The Indian team management has firmly dismissed assertions that former captain Rohit Sharma is under intense scrutiny from the team hierarchy. The veteran opening batsman has struggled to find momentum in the opening two encounters of the One Day International series against England.
The scrutiny intensified following a report by The Indian Express, which revealed that the national selection committee has informed the veteran batsman that he is excluded from India’s long term strategy for the 2027 World Cup. The publication suggested that the 39 year old icon may formally conclude his international career this coming Sunday, utilizing the third ODI at Lord’s Cricket Ground as his final appearance for the national side.
Visualizing the Slump and the Jaiswal Factor
During India’s four wicket defeat in the second ODI at Cardiff, the experienced opener labored for 26 runs across a 47 ball stay at the crease. Struggling significantly to rotate strike, his innings eventually ended when he was dismissed by Will Jacks. This followed a meager 11 run contribution in the series opener at Edgbaston.
Compounding the pressure on the veteran opener is the escalating public demand for the reinstatement of young prodigy Yashasvi Jaiswal. Despite registering a century in his most recent outing for the national team, Jaiswal was altogether omitted from the squad selected for this English tour.
This development follows the selection committee’s decision last year to transition the ODI captaincy away from Rohit Sharma, officially appointing Shubman Gill as his successor. Insiders indicate that the Ajit Agarkar led committee intends to prioritize younger talents like Jaiswal, allegedly conveying this roadmap to the veteran last week. Reports indicate that the opening batsman expressed dissatisfaction with the decision, initiating discussions with senior Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) officials during the ongoing tour.
Coaching Staff Rallies Behind the Veteran
In the post match press conference, India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak strongly defended the 2024 T20 World Cup winning captain, maintaining that an athlete of his stature remains unaffected by external noise.
“See, I don’t think a big player like Rohit Sharma can have any sort of pressure. He’s too good a player to feel that. Yes, he didn’t get runs in the opening two matches, but I don’t think that makes any difference. But today, it also looked like he’d probably get a good inning out. But that’s okay,” Kotak told reporters in the post-match press conference.
Kotak further dismissed assertions that the opener was technically out of depth during the Cardiff fixture, attributing the low strike rate to a lack of scoring opportunities in the batter’s preferred hitting zones.
“See, honestly, I have played a lot of cricket, and I have seen a lot of cricket. On a day, there are a lot of batters I have seen, they don’t get that momentum that they are looking for, and that can happen. You might see a completely different innings from Rohit Sharma at Lord’s,” said Kotak.
The batting coach expanded on the pitch conditions and the contrasting momentum at the other end, explaining:
“So, I don’t, I wouldn’t use the word he was struggling, but, maybe the shots he normally plays on the up and all, which is because of the double bounce, probably he felt it was not comfortable and Shubman got a quick start, then Virat got a quick start, but, he didn’t get probably balls in his slot, or he didn’t get going. That’s what I felt. So, I wouldn’t say, because you could definitely see the completely different innings from a player like Rohit, and I think that I have seen that happening to a lot of batters. So, it’s not just Rohit, who, I wouldn’t use the word, he was struggling,” he added.
India lost the game
On the field, England successfully contained India to 233 runs despite half-centuries from Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer, capitalizing on a severe middle-order collapse. In reply, Joe Root anchored the English chase with a resilient, unbeaten 99, comfortably guiding the hosts to a four-wicket victory to level the series.
