Nikalna has been listening to Adam openly but,
We left your journey feeling very disrespectful.
The above lines are from poet Mirza Ghalib, which currently seems to fit Team India’s Test and ODI team captain Rohit Sharma. The way Rohit was sitting in solitude a day before the Sydney Test against Australia, it broke the hearts of the fans. Now just a day later, Rohit decided to keep himself out of this match and Jasprit Bumrah took command of the Indian team. Only he can tell whether Rohit is out or in. But acting captain Jasprit Bumrah and wicketkeeper batsman Rishabh Pant have definitely tried to calm the matter by saying that it was the ‘Hitman”s own decision.
Currently, there is no such example in which a captain has excluded himself from the playing-11. Almost 50 years ago, England captain Mike Denness had taken a decision like Rohit’s because he scored 65 runs in the first six innings during the Ashes series. Then Denness did not play in the Sydney Test and John Edrich took command of the English team in his place. Despite Denness being out, England lost the Sydney Test and fell 0-3 in the series. Then Denness returned in the fifth and last Test and also played a half-century innings.
Now let’s move towards the Sydney Test again… Even though Rohit Sharma is out of this match, there has been no improvement in the performance of the Indian team. In the first innings of the Sydney Test, the Indian team collapsed for just 185 runs. In India’s first innings, some batsmen were hit by aerial shots, while some of their old weaknesses were not going away. One or two batsmen even threw away their wickets after being set at the crease. In Test cricket, if a batsman is getting out by hitting irresponsible shots even after scoring 40 runs, then it is a matter to think about.
Kohli-Pant-Rahul-Gil also ‘out of track’
Rohit Sharma certainly scored 31 runs in this Test series after playing a total of 5 innings, but the performance of the rest of the Indian batsmen was also not high class. Barring Yashasvi Jaiswal and Nitish Kumar Reddy, the average of any Indian batsman in the current series is not even close to 40. Yashasvi has so far scored 369 runs in 9 innings at an average of 46.12. During this period, apart from one century, Yashasvi scored two half-centuries. However, in the remaining six innings, there were no runs from Yashasvi’s bat. On the other hand, Nitish Kumar Reddy, who is playing his debut Test series, has so far scored 294 runs at an average of 42.00, which included one century. Nitish had brought Team India out of trouble by scoring a century in the Melbourne Test, but he has completely failed in the next two innings.
Now Shubman Gill replaces Rohit Sharma in the Sydney Test. So far in the current series, Shubman has scored 80 runs in 4 innings at an average of just 20, which is quite reasonable for a number-3 batsman. King’s famous Kohli had shown signs of returning to form by scoring a century in the Perth Test, but after that century, it seemed as if the former Indian captain’s bat got rusty. So far in this series, Kohli has scored 184 runs in 9 innings at an average of 26.28.
The first few innings of KL Rahul were supposed to boost his morale, but gradually he too has lost his shine. Rahul has scored 263 runs in 9 innings at an average of 32.87, which included two half-centuries. Wicketkeeper batsman Rishabh Pant is getting starts, but he has not been able to convert them into big scores yet and is getting out after hitting bad shots. Pant has scored 194 runs in 8 innings at an average of 24.25. Washington Sundar (102 runs in 5 innings) and Ravindra Jadeja (122 runs in 4 innings) have also disappointed.
Performance of India’s main batsmen in BGT 2024-25
Rohit Sharma: 5 innings, 31 runs, highest score 10, average 6.20
Yashasvi Jaiswal: 9 innings, 369 runs, highest score 161, average 46.12
KL Rahul: 9 innings, 263 runs, highest score 84, average 32.87
Shubman Gill: 4 innings, 80 runs, highest score 31, average 20.00
Virat Kohli: 9 innings, 184 runs, highest score 100*, average 26.28
Rishabh Pant: 8 innings, 194 runs, highest score 40, average 24.25
Ravindra Jadeja: 4 innings, 122 runs, highest score 77, average 30.50
Nitish Kumar Reddy: 8 innings, 294 runs, highest score 114, average 42.00
Washington Sundar: 5 innings, 102 runs, highest score 50, average 25.50
Now seeing these figures, Rohit Sharma must be wondering whether he is completely responsible for the poor performance of the team? Was it all his fault? What responsibility does the rest of the senior players not have?
Overall, the biggest point of Rohit’s decision is that if a player is performing poorly continuously then he definitely does not get a place in the playing-11. Performance should be the criteria for selection in the team, otherwise one should drop oneself from the team. This decision of Rohit has given a big message to the Indian selectors also. Now it remains to be seen whether Indian batsmen will be punished for their poor performance after the Australia series or not…