Irfan Pathan Bold statement on Rohit Sharma: Former all-rounder Irfan Pathan believes that if Rohit had not been the captain of India, based on his current form he would not have got a place in the playing eleven. The fourth match of the India-Australia Border-Gavaskar Trophy series was played in Melbourne, in which India lost by a huge margin of 184 runs. Indian captain Rohit Sharma was a flop in this entire series and he could not show any special talent in this match also. While in the first innings he scored 3 runs, in the second innings he was out after scoring 9 runs. By winning the Boxing Day Test match, India has not only taken a 2-1 lead in the current series but has also dealt a blow to India’s chances of reaching the World Test Championship final.
Rohit Sharma has scored 31 runs in five innings at an average of just 6.20. This is the lowest average of any foreign captain on Australian soil. Rohit, who was out of the team in Perth Test, was able to score 3, 6 in Adelaide, 10 in Gabba and 3 and 9 in Melbourne. In such a situation, he is facing criticism regarding his form.
Irfan Pathan said on Star Sports about Rohit Sharma’s form, “A player who has scored almost 20,000 runs – yet the way Rohit is struggling now, it seems that his form is not supporting him at all.” What’s happening now is that he’s the captain, so he’s playing. If he wasn’t the captain he probably wouldn’t be playing right now.” He said, “You would have had an established team. Lokesh Rahul would have been playing at the top. (Yashasvi) Jaiswal would have been there. Shubman Gill would have been there.”
Pathan said, “If we talk realistically, considering the way he is struggling with the bat, he probably doesn’t get a place in the playing eleven. But because he is the captain and you want to win the next match and level the series. That’s why he remains in the team.”
Rohit has been struggling with poor form for quite some time. This year, he could score only 42 runs in four innings during the home Test series against Bangladesh and could add only 91 runs in three matches against New Zealand. Pathan said, “His form is very bad. Even in India before coming here, he was not scoring runs and even now he has not been able to score runs. When I see Rohit Sharma batting, it is It’s a very depressing sight.”
Pathan wondered why Kohli is not able to repeat the work he is doing in practice in match conditions. He said, “Virat Kohli’s shot – this is neither the first time nor the last time. He is not giving up the temptation of driving outside the off stump. He has been doing this for many years. Everyone is saying the same thing. “Virat Kohli also knows this. We all talk about his discipline – why doesn’t he bring that discipline on the field?”