Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri has backed Indian captain Rohit Sharma to return to his original opening slot in the third Test match against Australia. Rohit sacrificed his opening position in the second pink-ball Test at Adelaide after KL Rahul returned with scores of 26 and 77 in the opening Test at Perth.

Rahul added 201 runs with Yashasvi Jaiswal in the second essay, which is India’s highest opening alliance in Australian conditions. Thus, Rohit batted at number six in the second Test but aggregated only nine runs in both innings.

Rohit has been under the pump as he has managed a solitary fifty in the last six Test matches and he hasn’t batted at his best.

Ravi Shastri said as quoted by Sydney Morning Herald, “(Opening) That’s where he’s been at his best over the last eight or nine years. It’s not that he’s going to set the world on fire – he could – but that’s the place that’s best for him. To lead from the front. If he has to do damage, if he has to throw the first punch, that’s the best place from where he can do it. And it is important that India get their judgment right here, because 1-1 in the series, this is the moving Test match.”

The former Indian all-rounder also predicted that whichever team will win the Brisbane Test, will go on to win the five-match Test series.

“I feel whichever team wins this Test match will win the series. I have absolutely no doubt in my mind. So it is very, very important that India get the balance right, because Australia have got the confidence back,” said Shastri.

The third Test match between India and Australia will be played at the Gabba, Brisbane from December 14.