Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25: Shall India drop senior players Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma from playing XI in Sydney Test? Why it's a good move and what are the probable replacements?
A disastrous show at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) has left Team India grappling with a lot of unanswered questions, especially in the batting department. On a pitch that stayed true till the dying moments of day five, India’s batters including some notable stalwarts like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli failed to play an innings of substance thus leaving India’s lower order batters with a lot to contend with.
Previously, questions around Rohit and Virat’s place in the playing eleven have been raging for quite some time now. But following the 184-run heartbreak in Melbourne, the calls for their potential exclusion seem to be growing a lot louder than ever. Gone are those days now when the two batting legends were once considered the powerhouse of Indian cricket. Amidst waning form, time seems to be running out as India find themselves in a desperate position to save the series and their WTC final aspirations.
Breakdown of Rohit Sharma's poor run with the bat
It's been a nightmare for the India skipper ever since he arrived on Australian shores and the numbers speak for themselves. Despite averaging 40 in the longest format, his record in the ongoing BGT Test series stands in sharp contrast with his overall Test numbers. To add context to this claim, Jasprit Bumrah has taken one wicket less (30) than the total number of runs he has scored in this series (31). And to further add insult to injury, even Australia’s number 11 Scott Boland has faced more deliveries this series (119) as opposed to Rohit Sharma who faced just 110. The India skipper’s average has shrunk to a dismal 6.2 with a best score of only 10.
The stark drop in form was clearly visible in the New Zealand Test home series as well where he averaged only 15.16. In the past 11 Test innings, Rohit has only managed one fifty-plus score to his name while maintaining a paltry average of 11.09. As a batter, Rohit is facing challenges on multiple fronts. Firstly, given the recent failures with the bat, Rohit does not appear to be in the right headspace. Moreover, there also seems to be a lingering question mark around his technique which includes his footwork. The 37-year-old has found it difficult to get his feet going on bouncy Australian tracks and the ways in which he has been dismissed in this series just goes to tell you how Rohit’s footwork and hand-eye coordination have fallen apart.
Batting is not the sole skill which has come under scrutiny. Rohit has also come into fire for showing poor captaincy skills. Many experts hold the opinion that Rohit has been too defensive in his captaincy at times allowing the game to drift away from them during key passages of the game. Despite not being amongst the runs, Rohit promoted himself up the order at the expense of in-form KL Rahul. The move severely backfired and left the analysts searching for explanations. Further on, it was also not wise on his part to send Akash Deep as a nightwatchman when over 30 minutes of play was left during day two. India lost him early and slipped to a precarious position of 164-5 at stumps on day two.
Perhaps the most baffling move was Rohit’s decision to err on the side of caution when India had Australia cornered at 178-9. Instead of setting up an aggressive field set to Nathan Lyon and Boland who are particularly not renowned for their batting, Rohit chose to keep the field wide open which allowed the two tailenders to breathe freely and milk easy runs. As fate would have it, the pair went on to add 61 runs for the last wicket which ultimately proved to be a decisive point in the game as the target became way beyond India’s reach on the fifth day.
It is time for India’s think tank to seriously explore other alternatives. With the WTC final around the corner, India cannot afford another heartbreak on Australian shores. It is high time that they move on from Rohit and give one of the youngsters a go who are eagerly waiting for an opportunity to leave an impact in this high-octane Test tour. Furthermore, they should also consider an alteration in leadership and possibly pass on the captaincy baton to Bumrah who showcased incredible leadership capabilities in the Perth Test.
Breakdown of Virat Kohli’s poor run with the bat
Virat Kohli has also been undergoing a rapid deterioration in form. Known by many as a tough nut to crack under pressure, Kohli’s ongoing BGT tour paints a sorry tale this time around. Apart from his solitary century in Perth, the chase master has been all at sea while playing deliveries outside his reach. His major weakness around the fourth or fifth stump channel has been severely exposed in the series and the Aussie pacers seem to have worked out a plan to dismiss him regularly in that fashion. In seven Test innings in the ongoing BGT tour, Kohli has only accumulated 167 runs at a poor average of 27.3. But if we exclude his Perth hundred, his average drops down to 9.5. With such a record, Kohli would join the same league as Rohit who also averages around the same figure.
During the New Zealand home series, his woes against spin were severely exposed. Despite a gutsy 70 under fighting circumstances in the Bangalore Test, Kohli's average remained around 15 in that entire series. Spin was a foe for Kohli in India but in Australia, Kohli has found a new foe. Pace has proven to be his nemesis in this series which has led to his downfall on all seven occasions in which he has been dismissed.
On the contrary, his fab four counterpart, Steven Smith, has successfully overcome a form slump when it mattered the most. He stood tall by smashing 140 to lift his side to a famous win in this Boxing Day Test. Leading into the series, Smith was in the same boat as Kohli, struggling with form and severely short on runs. But the Aussie batting legend has outclassed the chase master while the latter continues to search for his lost glory even after getting through the major chunk of the Test series. Besides, when scoring runs for your country is the need of the hour, the 37-year-old has been needlessly getting himself into ugly on-field clashes, most notably with the young 19-year-old Sam Konstas which experts suggest was definitely uncalled for.
The fear that Kohli stoked in the minds and hearts of the Australia players and their supporters is now a thing of the past. A string of consistent failures from a batter of such high class is simply put - unacceptable.
A look at some viable alternatives
As per widespread speculation, experts believe that this BGT Test series could be Rohit’s last match in the red-ball format. Shubman Gill was unfortunate to miss out on the MCG Test but the youngster seems like a viable replacement for an out-of-form Rohit Sharma. If that were to take place, Rahul could drop below in the order and Gill could join hands with Yashasvi Jaiswal at the top to open the batting for India. As far as captaincy is concerned, Bumrah led the side superbly in Perth and if given an opportunity again, he could tip the scales in India’s favour and help the visitors salvage a hard fought win in Sydney.
The stature of a player as big as Kohli is unimaginable and replacing him will be a tall order to fill for India’s management. But with the series and the WTC on the line, India will have to take bold steps. Including someone like Dhruv Jurel or Sarfaraz Khan who have a demonstrated track record in recent times can save the day for India. The clock seems to be ticking on the senior players and India should look forward to the future and back the next generation of Indian cricketers to become some of the very best in world cricket
Australia registered their first Test win against India at the MCG and they will undoubtedly be pumped up heading to Sydney for the fifth and final Test. With the series now at 2-1 in favour of Australia, the home side has one hand on the trophy and it will take an extraordinary degree of courage and fightback from team India to square the series in Sydney.
Comments