Former captain and head coach Anil Kumble has urged the current India team management to resist pushing Shubman Gill to open the innings if regular captain Rohit Sharma is forced to miss one of the five Tests in Australia.

There is widespread speculation that Rohit may notplay the first Test in Perth from November 22 owing to personal reasons.

Gill, who started his Test career as an opener, has been batting at No. 3 after his indifferent form at the top and the subsequent success of Yashasvi Jaiswal since 2023.

“He (Shubman) is exceptionally talented, skilful and he’s done that. He’s been to Australia before. In Brisbane, he got a wonderful fifty and he knows the conditions,” Kumble told the broadcasters during the washed-out Day 1 of the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru.

Gill made his debut in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne during India’s previous tour Down Under in 2020-21.

Kumble suggested that KL Rahul would be better placed to open should Rohit be unavailable in Perth.

“I don’t want to change that. I know there’s a temptation to push Gill because Rohit is not available in the first Test. But, there’s always KL Rahul, that name is synonymous with change and adapting to whatever the team wants. Whether you want to open the batting or keep wickets, Rahul Dravid did that, now KL Rahul is doing that,” he said.

Kumble felt Gill at No. 3 was a specialist position and the likes of Dravid and Cheteshwar Pujara had successfully performed the role overseas in the past.

“For the last 25 years, there have been only two players who have been consistently playing (at No. 3) and and it’s a tough role. Both those batsmen, Rahul and Cheteshwar, contributed immensely during that period, and you know you have to balance it out. You could probably be batting the second ball of the Test match, or you could be batting much later when the conditions are easier,” Kumble said.

“But more often than not, you get in there to control that first session and see off the new ball because we know that the Kookaburra ball after the first 25 hours, the best time to bat is between the 30th over and the 60th over. And that’s what these two batters did throughout their careers, ensuring that the team was safe...” Kumble said.