Rishabh Pant did stitch a 58-run stand with skipper Virat Kohli, who top-scored with 67, but Vijay Shankar could not capitalise on his start and was out leg before to Rahmat Shah for 29.
Manchester: In a team where there is an intense fight for places, Vijay Shankar has got two opportunities to stake his claim for the No. 4 position. On both occasions, he did not capitalise and this could ignite a debate on whether Rishabh Pant should replace him for the game against England at Edgbaston on June 30.
Vijay's first opportunity came in the match against Afghanistan at Southampton where the Indian batsmen were put under the pump by the Afghanistan spinners. It was an ideal occasion for Vijay to prove his value after India lost their openers inside the first 15 overs. He did stitch a 58-run stand with skipper Virat Kohli, who top-scored with 67, but Vijay could not capitalise on his start and was out leg before to Rahmat Shah for 29.
Yesterday, another opportunity came his way when the openers were back in the pavilion in 21 overs. With Kohli batting fluently once again, all that Vijay had to do was hang in there. The Tamil Nadu lad instead tried to attack even as the odd ball behaved badly on an uneasy pitch. The two boundaries off Jason Holder were beautifully timed, but one ball that raced to the fence came off a risky shot inside edge. His 14-run knock ended when Kemar Roach got him to nudge one to wicketkeeper Shai Hope.
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It seems the team management will have to go back to the drawing board to find out who is best suited for the No. 4 position. And when they do that, Pant will figure in the discussion. Vijay's medium pace could be the only factor that may cause the team management to provide him another opportunity.
58 - Total number of runs scored by Vijay Shankar in three matches of the ongoing World Cup
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