IND vs AUS, 1st ODI: Kohli Hints At Rohit, Dhawan, Rahul Playing Together In Mumbai

With Rohit having had an excellent 2019 -- 2,442 runs across formats -- there is a three-way tussle for India's white-ball opening slots.

India skipper Virat Kohli on Tuesday ruled out all talks suggesting that that the opening troika of Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and K.L. Rahul could not feature together in the ODI series opener against Australia at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Tuesday. "Look, a guy in form is always good for the team...You obviously want to have the best players available and then choose from what the combination should be for the team. There might be a possibility that all three (Rohit, Shikhar and Rahul) might play. It will be interesting to see what balance we want to take in on the field," Kohli said on the eve of the match scheduled to be played at the Wankhede. With Rohit having had an excellent 2019 -- 2,442 runs across formats -- there is a three-way tussle for India's white-ball opening slots. It gets particularly stiffer in T20Is, with Rahul averaging 44.17 in the format, as opposed to Dhawan's 28.35. The 34-year-old Dhawan, who was making a comeback after an injury layoff, scored 32 and 52 in the two games against Sri Lanka and is not fussed about the competition. Kohli was quizzed about his batting position if all three play as the captain comes in at No.3. "I would be very happy to bat (lower down the order). Look I am not possessive about where I play. I am not insecure about where I bat," he said. "Being the captain of the team, it is my job to make sure that the next lot is also ready. A lot of the other people might not look at it that way, but your job as a captain is not only to look after the team right now, but also to prepare a team that you leave behind when you eventually pass it onto someone else," he added.