5 Indian openers waiting in the wings: Keeping Vijay and Dhawan on their toes

The duty of an opener is a specialized job, requiring a special set of skills; technique to see off the new ball and leaving the ball outside the off stump are some of the many skills expected of Test match openers. India has over the years produced some of the best openers of all times, though Midway through the 90’s there was a minor problem with openers; that was for a very brief period.

The list of great Indian openers will feature celebrated names of the game like Sunil Gavaskar, Vijay Merchant, Navjot Singh Sidhu, Krishnamachari Srikanth and more lately Virender Sehwag. India has been blessed in this aspect of the game.

The role of openers keeps changing with the passing time; you will see a drastic contrast if you draw a comparison between ‘the Sunil Gavaskar-era’ and ‘the Virender Sehwag-era’. If Sunil Gavaskar had the ability to leave the swinging ball, Sehwag was the exact opposite. He would butcher it through cover or backward point. Different players succeed because of different qualities in different eras.

Today, India is blessed with a good pool of openers; Shikhar Dhawan, Murli Vijay and Rohit Sharma as a backup opener. The openers have delivered at home and more recently in Australia.

But there are others who have been consistently been notching up the scores and in the process, keeping the current openers on their toes. I have identified 5 such names that are going to give Dhawan, Vijay, and Rohit, a real ‘run for their money’ in the near future.

K.L. Rahul

Lokesh Rahul

The 23 year-old from Bangalore, has already played for the national team down under. He was unsuccessful in the Boxing Day test, which was also his debut but showed a lot of character at Sydney when he scored an artistic 110, showing glimpses of Laxman in his prime.

K. L. Rahul is somebody who likes to play the long innings. He is lanky, and could also be your makeshift keeper in a crisis situation. Rahul is also next in line to take over the slot if a situation arises.

Jiwanjot Singh

Jiwanjot Singh

Another 23 year old from Punjab who has taken to the Ranji circuit like fish to water, scoring in excess of 1000 first class runs in his debut season and then topping it up with another successful season, where he managed to score at an average of 40+ in the 2013-14 season. He has also represented India at the under 19 level.

Today he is also playing the IPL where SRH roped him in for Rs 1 Crore Many may believe that he is a raw deal, but continuing to back him and motivating him by his coaches should see him mature quickly.

Abhinav Mukund

Abhinav Mukund

The Tamil Nadu opener has been knocking at the doors for quite some time now; has the ability and a composed head, backed with rich domestic experience. Mukund like any other left-hander is classy to watch and has an acumen for scoring big (has hit a triple century and has been involved in a 400+ run opening partnership with Murli Vijay).

He is exquisite through the off side and likes to play square of the wicket, like Andrew Strauss. With Mukund, if there is any ‘loose’ cog in the wheel, it is his ‘on-side’ play. In the last 6 months, he has slammed two big hundreds in the domestic circuit; 140 v U.P and 137 v J&K.

Shreyas Iyer

Shreyas Iyer

He is the rising star of Indian cricket and hopes from him have already started soaring. The Mumbaikar was one of India’s biggest catch this IPL (2015 edition), he scored 439 in 14 matches at a strike rate of 128.9.

Tough Shreyas Santosh Iyer does not have a sound technique and may look aggressive in his approach, but he more than makes up for it, with his guts and self-belief. Iyer made headlines when he became the highest run-getter for his state in his debut first-class season.

He compiled 809 runs at a staggering average of 50.5, and was the shining star in Mumbai's otherwise woeful campaign. The 21 year old is an exciting prospect for the future and the selectors will keep a very close watch on him.

Manoj Tiwary

Manoj Tiwary

Many may think I am off target on this, but I have always believed a successful number 3 can go ‘one step up’. We have to take into account his style of play, which is attacking; hence possibilities are Virat Kohli may get interested in him (eg. Harbhajan getting a test call after 2 years in Bangladesh).

The Howrah boy was ‘the’ next big thing when he arrived as he played a 360-degree game; strong on both sides of the wicket and a crisp timer of the ball. It would not be wrong to say that his journey has been full of stumbling blocks, getting injured whenever he got selected (Mirpur instantly comes to mind).

The complete batsman from the east, impressed all with his 796 runs at a ‘Bradman-like average’ of 99.50 in the 2006-07 Ranji Trophy season. He has been waiting in the wings for a long period now and with age still on his side, the selectors ‘will’ look at him as an opener, as his form is ‘decent’.

These are just few names who can be looked at as options. There are many other openers who have been performing well in the domestic circuit hence this is just a contrasting pool of players with different styles of play. For example, if Virat Kohli is looking for solidity in technique and age, Rahul and Jiwanjot Singh can be healthy options. Similarly for attack, Manoj Tiwary and Shreyas Iyer could be the next in line and for sheer experience, Mukund looks well placed.

Now with the ‘holy trinity’ of Sachin, Sourav and Laxman all set to take charge of the advisory committee, things are looking bright. The BCCI are making the correct moves but they will be tested and these 5 names are surely going to give them migraines.