By: Sports DeskJanuary 4, 2026 10:19 AM IST 2 min readFormer Indian cricketer R Ashwin opined that India could have picked Ruturaj Gaikwad over Rishabh Pant in the upcoming three-match ODI series against New Zealand. Ashwin pointed out that Pant is more suited to bat in the top order than in the middle order.“Could Gaikwad have been kept in the squad? I think that was a real possibility. The only spot of contention is between Pant and Gaikwad. It was a straight decision. Shreyas Iyer deserved to come back after the injury, so no discussion there. It is his rightful position. The debate is over who goes out. Between a second wicketkeeper and a batter, you can get a keeper from anywhere to cover,” he said on ‘Ash ki Baat’.Ruturaj Gaikwad scored a sublime ton against South Africa in the second ODI in Raipur. Through his knock, he managed to bat spin and pace quite nicely and was rotated strike, similar to Kohli. Ruturaj Gaikwad of India raises his bat after scoring a hundred during the 2nd ODI match between India and South Africa at Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium, Raipur, India, on December 3, 2025. (CREIMAS for BCCI)“Who will keep a track on Ruturaj Gaikwad’s mindset now? At four or five, I am sticking my neck out, his batting against spin and ability to run between wickets and close out an innings is phenomenal. I personally don’t think Pant can bat in the middle-order in white-ball cricket at the moment. I think he is a top-three batter,” he added.“Ruturaj will get a long rope only when Rohit and Kohli decide to hang up their boots. Till then, getting a long run for him is going to be hard,” he said.“When Kohli came into the team, there were not as many players knocking on the door with immense talent and Kohli’s talent was shining through. I remember when we were playing CSK vs RCB in Durban, he stepped out and hit Muralitharan for a six. He made everyone take notice. Those are the things that stood out. The competition for places now is absolutely brutal,” Ashwin added.Stay updated with the latest sports news across Cricket, Football, Chess, and more. Catch all the action with real-time live cricket score updates and in-depth coverage of ongoing matches.© IE Online Media Services Pvt LtdTags:Ashwin