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Rohit’s recent form in Tests has been alarming. The Indian captain has amassed just 133 runs in his last 10 innings at an average of 13.30.
Rohit Sharma after being dimissed in the Pune Test vs New Zealand (AP)
Captain Rohit Sharma took responsibility for India’s humiliating defeat to New Zealand, which ended their dominance at home in Tests. The Black Caps thumped India 3-0, becoming the first team to inflict a whitewash over India in a Test series comprising a minimum of three matches. The hosts faltered with the bat, with Rohit and former captain Virat Kohli being far from their usual best.
Rohit’s recent form in Tests has been alarming. The Indian captain has amassed just 133 runs in his last 10 innings at an average of 13.30. Now that he is gearing up for the challenging tour of Australia, he needs to play a crucial role, with India’s World Test Championship (WTC) final qualification at stake. After losing the New Zealand series, India are required to beat Australia 4-0 to qualify on their own.
Speaking about Rohit’s recent performance with the bat, former opener Krishnamachari Srikkanth opined that the Indian captain is ageing, and if he fails to find his rhythm in Australia, he will announce his retirement from Test cricket himself.
“100 per cent, you have to start thinking ahead (if India doesn’t do well in Australia). If Rohit Sharma doesn’t do well, I think he himself will retire from Test cricket, for all you know. He will play ODIs only. He has already left T20I cricket. We have to keep in mind that he is also ageing. He is no longer getting younger,” Srikkanth said in his YouTube show.
The 1983 World Cup-winner lauded Rohit’s act of accepting his failure in the New Zealand Tests. Srikkanth said Rohit’s admission itself is a sign that the latter is on the ‘road to recovery’.
“At least, Rohit Sharma had the guts. Hats off to Rohit Sharma for accepting the fact that he played badly throughout the series and captained badly. That’s a great thing. That’s the first move of a player to get back to the rhythm. Accepting your fault is very important. That’s a very important quality of a human being. He accepted it openly, and that means he is on the road to recovery, that’s my opinion,” he concluded.
