Australia vs India 2018-19: India's opening conundrum in Tests

One key aspect for any champion team is stability at the top of the order. Lately, India haven't had the greatest opening stands. With stands of 3, 63, 6 and 0 in the current series, the openers have let the team down. The likes of Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane are often exposed to the new ball. This does not allow these batsmen to dominate right from the word go.

The worst part for team India is that along with their out of form openers they are also against one of the best bowling groups going around in the world. The likes of Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood are to trouble even the best of batsmen. With the Boxing day Test approaching, it would be very interesting to see which two batsmen take the field as openers. Here are the options that India has got.

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1. KL Rahul

After that blistering 149 against England in the final Test, the hopes and confidence of Rahul went high. People expected that they would see a more attacking version of him in Test cricket. But, after that innings, he only has two scores in the double digits. He had a poor series against the Windies at home and now a poor string of scores against the Aussies. He averages a mere 14.17 in his last four matches.

He is rated as one of the most talented batsmen going around the country, but his performance does not reflect that. He has been given a long rope of run despite his failures. It still wouldn't be a surprise to see Rahul take the field on the 26th, as there are no current openers in form and also that Shaw had to return home, may work in his favour. To add to that if Rahul doesn't make the XI, it wouldn't be the end of the world to him as he still has age by his side.

2. Murali Vijay

The last time around when India toured the SENA countries, Vijay was one of the successful batsman scorers with Kohli and Rahane. Fast forward to 2018 Vijay has certainly forgotten the art of leaving the ball, which was the key to his success last time around.

Vijay averages a mere 9.37 in his last four matches.

Having been dropped after the first two Tests against England, Vijay had a short stint with Essex. With a string of good scores there and the reputation as a solid opener, he was selected ahead of Mayank Agarwal as the third opener. Vijay averages a mere 9.37 in his last 4 games. With age not being on his side, it would be an uphill climb for him.

3. Mayank Agarwal

If there is anyone that deserves a national cap, there could be no one other than Mayank Agarwal now. Through stellar performance in the domestic circuit and for India A, Mayank broke into the Indian squad against the Windies at home. He did not get a game against the Windies and subsequently not picked for the Australian series.

Mayank Agarwal averages close to 50 in LIST A cricket.

Averaging close to 50 in LIST A cricket (49.98), Mayank did not knock on the Indian door he, in fact, broke the door open. Prithvi Shaw's injury is a blessing for Mayank. He seems all set to make his debut at MCG, the same venue where his Karnataka teammate KL Rahul made his debut.

4. Cheteshwar Pujara

When you talk about opening batsmen, the first thing that comes to the mind is stability. Pujara is well known for his patience and stability. He would be an ideal choice as an opener, as none of the other openers is in form. India requires someone who could bat for a longer period and see off the new ball and Pujara is the right man for the job.

Pujara averages 116 as an opening batsman.

Pujara has opened for India in six innings so far and averages 116. With both the current openers struggling, Pujara would be the ideal replacement at the top. This would also allow Virat to go back to his 5 bowlers theory, that is by including Hardik Pandya and making Vihari bat at 3.

There are even a few other options with Parthiv Patel in the squad, but it seems very unlikely that he will make the cut. So, it would be very interesting to see who makes into the XI on the 26th.