5 reasons why Rohit Sharma should be moved to No. 4 despite his success as an opener

Rohit Sharma is one of the few batsmen in modern cricket who was made a makeshift opener in ODIs and grabbed the opportunity with both hands. Sharma, at this moment is one of the better openers in limited overs cricket, who can score at an alarmingly fast pace.But many cricket lovers and pundits have argued that the exigencies of the situation and the balance of the team demand that Rohit Sharma starts batting at number 4 again. A lack of depth in the Indian batting order and an inability to finish off matches has expedited the demands.Let us look at 5 reasons why Rohit Sharma should be moved to No. 4 despite his success as an opener.

#5 Maintain a healthier run rate in the middle overs

In the ongoing series against South Africa, India have struggled to score runs from overs 31 to 40. The run rate has slowed down atrociously on quite a few occasions and led to pressure being mounted on the batsmen in the slog overs.

With Rohit Sharma's penchant for finding the boundaries at will, he can keep the scoreboard ticking if he comes in at number 4. He has shown his ability to pick singles and combine that with the occasional big hit which is just what India needs in the middle overs at the moment.

#4 He plays spinners well

Though Indians are characteristically known as good players of spin bowling, Rohit Sharma is one of the best of the lot. Even in the ongoing series against South Africa where the Indians have occasionally struggled against Imran Tahir, Sharma has been merciless on him, lofting him for sixes at will.

Rahane has found it difficult to score big against spinners as he loves to use the pace available to score off the faster bowlers. Nor does he dance down the wicket at will, like Sharma can loft spinners over long on. This naturally makes Rohit Sharma a better choice at number 4, to prevent the opposition spinners from putting brakes on the scoring rate, as they have been doing of late.

#3 The Rahane conundrum

Despite Dhoni's mild protestations that Rahane is only suited at the top of the order, India have found that Rahane is too good a batsman to be left out of the playing XI even if he cannot be accommodated in the top three. But India still seem to be unsure as to what Rahane's batting position should be.

Dhoni himself has asserted that Rahane struggles to score runs once the ball becomes softer. Though he has played well for India at the number three slot, that inevitably means pushing Kohli down to number four which he does not seem to enjoy.

Having Rahane in the middle order further kills the possibility of having a successful change in the batting order. When Dhoni came in at number 4 in the third ODI in the series, Rahane had to slide down the order but looked totally out of place when he had to slog from the word go. The best solution to this conundrum would be to ask Rahane to open the batting and push Rohit Sharma down to number 4.

#2 A more stable middle order

A jinx seems to have developed in the minds of the Indian cricket fans that whenever Rohit Sharma scores a century, India goes on to lose the match. But if we look closely at what happened in the first T20 and first ODI against South Africa in this series, the deeper truth unmasks itself.

India seemed to be comfortably cruising to victory until Sharma got out. It is no secret that India lacks a finisher now and is desperate for a bit more stability in the lower middle order. Rohit Sharma coming in at number 4 can play the role of the much-needed anchor as he has done for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL.

If he gets in, he can easily change gears and do the big-hitting towards the end.

#1 He could play the role of a finisher

It is no secret that India have been struggling to find a finisher for some time now. Raina has lacked the calmness of mind to finish off matches, while Dhoni seems to have lost some of his big-hitting abilities of late. The talk of a lot of promising youngsters have been doing the rounds but no all-rounder has been able to make the spot his as of now.

Rohit Sharma has shown in the past that he can be a dangerous finisher in the slog overs whenever he gets his eye in. If he bats at number four, the chances are that he will be there at the end of the innings on more occasions, and can be the experienced head to guide the team to victory that India desperately need now.