IND vs AUS Test: Rohit Sharma Captaincy – India captain Rohit Sharma begins his toughest phase as the captain. While he has already lost two major trophies — Asia Cup and ICC T20 World Cup — the BCCI is determined to land the World Test Championship mace. Hence, the next five Tests including 4 matches against Australia and the WTC Final also against Australia could determine future of Rohit as India Test captain. The BCCI has sent a clear message to the Indians stars, “Can’t afford to lose another ICC Trophy”. The four-match Test series begins on Thursday in Nagpur. Follow India vs Australia LIVE Updates on InsideSport.IN.
India last won an ICC trophy back in 2013. Since then, the only multi-national title came in 2018 when India lifted Asia Cup. Rohit Sharma as the captain has dominated in bilateral series, taking India to World No 1 rank in both ODIs and T20s. India are also on the verge of becoming World No 1 in Tests. But all of that are without any ICC trophy.
“Look, the message has been clear. We can’t afford to lose another ICC trophy. All those bilateral records will be of no use if we can’t win in World Cups. We have lost three such tournaments in two years. Rohit also knows that and so does the entire team. Everyone is determined to win end that drought,” a senior BCCI official told InsideSport.
IND vs AUS LIVE: ‘KL Rahul won’t keep wickets in Tests’, Rohit Sharma…
IND vs AUS Test: 5 Tests likely to decide Rohit Sharma’s FUTURE as India Test captain, BCCI official says ‘Can’t afford to lose another ICC trophy’
Rohit Sharma Test captaincy Record:
- vs SriLanka: India won by an innings & 222 runs
- vs SriLanka: India won by 238 runs
However, what if India fail to win against Australia and don’t qualify for the WTC Final? There could be a ring of changes in the guards. To start with, Rohit Sharma may take the fall and step aside to focus on ODI World Cup. As the WTC Final in June will mark the end of 2021-23 cycle and the beginning of 2023-25 cycle, India may look at new leadership.
“We haven’t had any discussion over captaincy change. But when one cycle comes to an end, the new one starts. Whether Rohit will stay on as the Test captain is a matter of discussion based on the results,” the official said.
So, far Rohit Sharma hasn’t led in significant Test series since taking charge full-time. He missed the one-off Test against England last year due to Covid. Rohit has missed 8 out of last 10 Test matches India have played.
In fact, Rohit hasn’t had the chance to lead India Test team properly yet. As a captain, he has led India only in two Tests against SriLanka last year in March. In such a circumstance, it is unfair to even assess his captaincy. But with time and age not on his side, he won’t get an extended run as the Tets captain like MS Dhoni or Virat Kohli or even KL Rahul.
Preps in full swing 👌 👌 #TeamIndia hit the ground running for the #INDvAUS Test series opener in Nagpur 👍 👍 pic.twitter.com/LwJUGZ5hPp
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 5, 2023
India’s WTC Race:
- To make things worse for Rohit, India are in a cat-and-mouse race for WTC Final.
- India must win against Australia 2-0 or 3-1 to qualify for WTC Final.
- World No 1 Australia are favourite to go through.
- But as India have not lost a series to Australia at home since 2004, it is Rohit Sharma’s series to lose.
- India have won all last three editions of Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
- With three losses in last three ICC events, India are desperate to end the drought.
- And the four-match Test series will determine India’s fate and whether India will make it to two consecutive WTC Finals.
IND vs AUS Test: 5 Tests likely to decide Rohit Sharma’s FUTURE as India Test captain, BCCI official says ‘Can’t afford to lose another ICC trophy’
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