Rohit Sharma, IND vs AUS Sydney Test:
On June 29, 2024, in a historic match at Barbados, under the leadership of Rohit Sharma, the Indian cricket team carved its name into the history books. Team India ended an 11-year drought by beating South Africa by 7 runs in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 final.
Rohit became a national hero post the T20 World Cup triumph. Earlier, under his captaincy, the team had also reached the ODI World Cup 2023 final. Winning the T20 World Cup elevated their standing, and India was also leading the race to the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final at that time.
It was a golden era for Captain Rohit and his men as they were set for another ICC title chase at the WTC. Rohit was in fiery form, impressively finishing as the second-highest scorer in the T20 World Cup with 257 runs across 8 matches. Upon returning home with the T20 World Cup trophy, Rohit and the team received a hero’s welcome, with celebrations breaking out in Mumbai.
Fans eagerly believed that Hitman would also lead the nation to a WTC victory. But within six months, everything changed drastically! The Indian team now stands on the brink of exiting the WTC final.
Source: aajtak
Talk of Rohit’s retirement began surfacing, triggering a mixed reaction from fans - some trolling and others sympathizing. This upheaval began with Gautam Gambhir’s entry as coach and India’s 2-0 ODI series loss to Sri Lanka - the only ODI series they played in 2024.
Although India clean-swept Bangladesh 2-0 in a home Test series thereafter, questions about Rohit's captaincy surfaced as Bangladesh seemed tough competition at times. However, the Indian team managed a clean sweep. Later, New Zealand visited India and was underestimated, leading to unexpected results even as Coach Gambhir made bold statements.
With Tom Latham as captain, New Zealand dealt India a clean sweep in a three-match Test series on Indian soil. Rohit scored only 91 runs at a measly average of 15.16 over six innings, marking the beginning of Hitman's slump, which shows no signs of stopping. Currently, the Indian team trails 1-2 on the Australian tour with a five-Test match series in progress.
Source: aajtak
The fourth match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy took place in Melbourne, where a crushing defeat sparked retirement rumors for Rohit. Some reports even suggested that the fifth Test would be his last. As the Sydney Test loomed, news emerged that Rohit wouldn't be in the playing XI.
Now in the Sydney Test series finale, Rohit remains absent from the playing XI, marking him as the first Indian captain dropped mid-series due to poor form - a mere six months after winning the T20 World Cup 2024 title.
In these six months, the tide turned dramatically... from being hailed as a hero, Rohit is now nudged towards retirement. Despite being the captain, he’s axed from the playing XI. The Indian team treads precariously towards potentially missing the WTC final, with no guarantee of making it even with a Sydney Test win.
Source: aajtak
If we delve into records, Rohit in this Australia series shelled only 31 runs in 5 innings, exhibiting an average poorer than even a tail-ender's, standing at a mere 6.20. Contrastingly, pace bowler Akash Deep outshined Rohit with 38 runs over three innings. As fans, one might argue dropping Rohit from the playing XI is unjust, but a look at these statistics might change that narrative.
Rohit's Test Career (up until Sydney Test)
67 Tests, 116 innings, 4,301 runs, 212 highest score, 40.57 average, 12 centuries, and 18 half-centuries.
Rohit's ODI Career
265 matches, 257 innings, 10,866 runs, 264 highest score, 49.16 average, 31 centuries, and 57 half-centuries.
Rohit's T20I Career
159 matches, 151 innings, 4,231 runs, 121* highest score, 32.05 average, 5 centuries, and 32 half-centuries.
