Speaking exclusively to India Today, Harbhajan gave his take on what could ideally be India's batting order keeping in mind that seasoned skipper Virat Kohli would not be available for three of the 4 Tests due to him taking paternity leave as he expects the birth of his first child in January.
Harbhajan felt that India should open with their highly successful newly formed opening combination of Rohit Sharma and Mayank Agarwal against the Aussies, hoping that Rohit would have fully recovered from his hamstring injury on time ahead of the series opener at Adelaide.
Harbhajan Gives His Take On What Could Be Ideal Batting Combination Against Australians In Test Series
Harbhajan added that KL Rahul, who makes his way back into the Test squad after a gap of almost a year is a quality frontline batsman who can bat at No.3 or 4 or even open the innings. 'Bhajji' threw a hint of sorts that in the absence of skipper Virat Kohli who usually bats at No.4, Rahul could be an ideal candidate to fill in that slot.
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"I would not change the opening combination, Rohit Sharma should open in Australia and KL Rahul can fill that slot for Virat Kohli. Rahul is too good a player to bat at No. 3, 4, or even open. It will not make a huge difference if he bats at No. 3 or opens because he is a quality player," Harbhajan Singh told on India Today's Boria Mazumdar on the channel's sports show 'Inspiration'.
"Both the teams will be starting from scratch and it will come down to who plays the better cricket and who will bowl better. The pink ball seams around a lot when its new but once the seam settles down it gets easier to bat. Our seamers will be looking forward to bowl with the pink ball because India has got a great lineup. Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and the others can do the damage which Australia will also look to do," Harbhajan Singh said.
Rohit Sharma Set To Join Indian Team Ahead Of 1st Test At Adelaide
Rohit Sharma, who is expected to join the Indian team ahead of the first Test at Adelaide starting December 17 post completing his rehabilitating at NCA to fully recover from a hamstring injury.
KL Rahul who emerged as the leading run scorer in the recently concluded IPL 2020 at UAE, makes a comeback into the Test squad after a gap of over one year. Meanwhile, Cheteshwar Pujara who is the team's middle order lynch-pin and India's stable No.3 in the longer format has not played any form of professional cricket since March 2019.