You can’t teach leadership, they say. Rohit Sharma proved that right when he dropped himself from the India cricket team despite being the captain since 2022. He knew, amid his lean patch, he was dragging the team down and therefore benched himself from the India vs Australia 5th Test. But that doesn’t mean he can’t contribute.
Rohit Sharma helps ‘new captain’ Jasprit Bumrah
13 overs into the second day’s play in Sydney, the umpires called for a drinks break. With umbrellas and water bottles, in walked Rohit Sharma. He went straight to Jasprit Bumrah, who replaced him as captain, and had a chat with him. Rishabh Pant, who’ll most likely be named the vice-captain now that Bumrah’s role has been elevated, was also listening to what Rohit was saying.
Team India was in a good position when drinks were called. They had Australia four down, but with the sun beating down, the Sydney pitch seemed to be easing out, and that’s where the tactic from Rohit Sharma could help Bumrah, who’s inexperienced as a captain.
Bumrah & Rohit Sharma’s relationship
One mustn’t forget that Bumrah made his Indian Premier League debut under Rohit and has a good relationship with his former Team India and Mumbai Indians captain. When Bumrah had walked out for the toss yesterday, he had also praised Rohit Sharma for showing leadership.
“Our captain has shown leadership by opting to rest in this game. That shows there’s a lot of unity in this team. There’s no selfishness. Whatever is in the teams best interest we are looking to do that,” Bumrah had said after winning the toss.
India’s Playing XI for the Sydney Test
Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah (c), Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
OUT: Rohit Sharma and Akash Deep
