VIRAT Kohli is India’s third opening batter, there will be games where he will open, Rohit Sharma has said, but has also added that KL Rahul has the full support of the team management and remains India’s first-choice opener for the World Cup.

Kohli opened in the absence of the resting Rohit in India’s final match at the Asia Cup, a dead rubber, and scored his first T20I hundred, his first in international cricket in nearly three years.

“It’s always nice to have options available to you,” Rohit said two days before the start of the three-T20I series against Australia. “It is very important when you go in a tournament like a World Cup. You want the flexibility. We only talk about it, but this is actually what it means. You want your players to be in their best shape, batting in any position and so on.

“For us, when we try and do something new, it doesn’t mean that is permanent. We understand the quality of all the players and what they bring to us. We do understand that, but yeah it is an option for us. We will keep that in mind that since we haven’t taken a third opener, he can obviously open. He opens for his franchise and has done really well. It is a definite option for us.”

Since Kohli is now the identified third opener, he will be given a chance or three to open before the World Cup. “I have had a chat with Rahul bhai [Dravid, the coach] that we will have to open with Virat in some matches because he is our third opener,” Rohit said. “We saw that in the last match, and we are quite happy with what we saw. I don’t think we will experiment for that position a lot.”

That doesn’t have any negative implications for Rahul, who is still finding his way back in after an injury layoff. “KL Rahul, according to me, will play the World Cup, and open,” Rohit said. “His performances for India tend to go unnoticed. He is a very important player for India. If you look at his record over the last two-three years, it is very good.

“I don’t think it is right to not consider one performance because someone else has performed. We are clear what is cooking but I want to make it clear for people. There is no confusion. We are very clear about what KL brings to us. He is a very, very important and a quality player, and a match-winner as well. His presence at the top is very, very crucial for us.”(Cricinfo).