Eng v Ind 2021: Mayank Agarwal or KL Rahul? Injured Gill leaves India's top-order spot up for grabs

KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal, opening batsmen on the field and best mates off it, are now in the running to open the batting for India alongside a cemented Rohit Sharma, with one month left before the much-awaited India vs England five-match Test series.

This is due to the all-but-certain absence of Shubman Gill, who suffered a serious stress-related shin injury during training sessions after India’s World Test Championship final defeat against New Zealand earlier last week. While Gill continues his stay in England as the management is yet to decide on his availability, India seem to be well covered if he were to return home.

It is to nobody’s surprise that Mayank Agarwal is a strong and safe contender. His impressive Test career, comprising 14 matches and 1052 runs at a healthy average of 45, speaks for itself.

But Agarwal has been inconsistent in his performances lately, most recently in Australia during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy earlier this year. Agarwal averaged just 13 in the six Test innings he played in the series. He frequently succumbed to an altered stance that didn’t quite give him the required balance to move forward and back against the Australian quicks, which left him vulnerable on the front foot more often than not.

However, Agarwal’s career-best of 243 vs Bangladesh in 2019 spoke volumes about his ability to produce a well-paced long innings. After all, he is India’s first-choice reserve opener and holds a solid temperament for such a role. If Agarwal finds his form, and quickly, his addition to the top order will be ideal for India, provided he is consistent enough to cement a spot in an ever-changing Indian top-order.

Shastri & co’s second option, KL Rahul, has not been a part of the Indian Test eleven for over two years now. The Karnataka batter was dropped ahead of the home series against South Africa owing to poor form in 2019, despite numerous opportunities offered to him.

Competition is immense and the opportunities are, well, scarce to say the least. With Mayank Agarwal finding his rhythm alongside Rohit Sharma, who was determined to revive his Test career and cement himself at the top for India, Rahul had no choice but to allow Agarwal and Rohit to have another go at their opening partnership.

With A-list talents like Prithvi Shaw and Shubman Gill recently making remarkable debuts for the side, Rahul’s consistent show of inconsistency pushed him further down the waiting list. Out of the 60 Test innings Rahul has played, 54 have come as an opener.

Not to forget, he is the same KL Rahul who scored 110 runs in only his second Test, at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Rahul has so far accumulated 1,905 Test runs at an average of 35.28, with 199 being his career-best.

And although the Limited-Overs star comes with an abundance of experience under his belt, his temperament for Tests has been questioned, and whether he has overcome his problems while facing the new ball is yet to be seen. Rahul may not be selected up-top, but his significance in the middle order should not be underestimated.

If not Agarwal or Rahul, then who?

Prithvi Shaw is a risky but viable option. The 21-year-old star’s issues in technique while facing hot pace and swing were on display for everyone to see in Australia earlier this year.

Shubman Gill was the ideal replacement, and his heroics in Brisbane solidified his spot with Rohit at the top. Shaw was sent back to the domestic circuit to deconstruct his batting and rectify his technicalities.

He is now scheduled to fly with India’s second-string side for a series against Sri Lanka after a successful Vijay Hazare Trophy run for Mumbai earlier this year. With 754 runs under his belt, Shaw became the highest run-scorer in a single edition of the tournament, beating Mayank Agarwal’s total of 723 runs in the 2018 edition.

Well, if the selectors decide to look past Agarwal, Rahul & Shaw, Bengal’s Abhimanyu Easwaran has been on the selection committee’s radar for quite a while now. The 25-year-old has scored 4401 runs in 64 first-class games at an average of 43.57, with 18 fifties and 13 centuries to his name.

Easwaran was prolific in the 2018/19 Ranji season, having scored 891 runs with a remarkable average of 95.66, making him one of the leading frontrunners to make their debut for India. However, a drastic dip in form next season caused selectors to wait on him.

However, it seems unlikely that Shastri and Kohli will hand Easwaran his maiden Test cap ahead of some experienced options in swinging conditions. While there may seem to be several options to replace Shubman Gill at the top of the order, Mayank Agarwal seems most likely to make the cut.