sIPL 2022: Will Rohit Sharma step down? – Five matches, zero wins and 108 runs at an average of just 21.60, Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma has endured a terrible run as a player and a captain in the IPL 2022. With captaincy burden of four teams, questions have already begun to rise about whether it is already affecting him. Follow MI vs LSG & IPL 2022 Live Updates on InsideSport.IN.
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IPL 2022: Is captaincy BURDEN already affecting Rohit Sharma? Poor form and winless run could force MI captain to step down
IPL 2022: Is captaincy BURDEN already affecting Rohit Sharma? Poor form and winless run could force MI captain to step down
Rohit Sharma is now the captain of India Test team, ODI team, T20 team besides Mumbai Indians. With constant cricket and playing through high-pressure situations, former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar said he expected Rohit to step down from MI leadership. While that did not happen before the season, will he hand over the reins to someone else in the team and relax and focus on batting?
“His record has been like this for the last 3-4 seasons, average less than 30, strike-rate not 150 or 160. When he plays for India his numbers get better because then he only thinks about himself and less about the team. When playing IPL, he tries to play the anchor role. If he plays freely, we’ll see the Rohit Sharma we see in Indian cricket,” said Sanjay Manjrekar told ESPNCricinfo.
“Before the season I even felt Rohit Sharma might leave captaincy like Virat Kohli, relax a bit, play as a pure batter and hand the responsibility to Pollard who is a brilliant international captain,” Manjrekar added.
IPL 2022: Is captaincy BURDEN already affecting Rohit Sharma? Poor form and winless run could force MI captain to step down
IPL 2022: Is captaincy BURDEN already affecting Rohit Sharma? Poor form and winless run could force MI captain to step down
Rohit Sharma in IPL
IPL Edition | M | Inns | 50s | 100s | HS | Runs | Avg | S/R |
2017 | 17 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 67 | 333 | 23.79 | 121.98 |
2018 | 14 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 94 | 286 | 23.83 | 133.02 |
2019 | 15 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 67 | 405 | 28.93 | 128.57 |
2020 | 12 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 80 | 332 | 27.67 | 127.69 |
2021 | 13 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 63 | 381 | 29.31 | 127.42 |
2022* | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 108 | 21.6 | 133.33 |
IPL 2022: Will Rohit Sharma step down?
- Rohit Sharma has averaged just 21.60 this season.
- In last five seasons, his average has been below 30.
- Since taking over full-time captaincy in the ODI series against West Indies, Rohit Sharma has averaged 30 in Tests (2 matches), 26 in 3 ODIs and 19.33 in 6 T20Is.
- Under Rohit Sharma, Mumbai Indians have nosedived in the last two seasons. In IPL 2021, MI finished fifth and this time, they have hit rock bottom with a five-match losing streak.
IPL 2022: Is captaincy BURDEN already affecting Rohit Sharma? Poor form and winless run could force MI captain to step down
First time saw Rohit getting emotional in post match presentation. 😞💔
Man you guys have won 5 trophies for us.🙌👑💙#kkrvmi #RohitSharma #MumbaiIndians pic.twitter.com/bjtnYdQOHp— Saurabh Raghav 🇮🇳 (@TheRohitianboy) April 7, 2022
Personal form aside, he hasn’t taken great decisions as a captain either. He has shown frustrations on the field, lashing out at his teammates while he has been stubborn to make changes.
Tim David, despite his qualities, have been benched with just two opportunities while Kieron Pollard despite poor form has continued to be in the team. MI have persisted with Daniel Sams despite poor form while he hasn’t got the balance right.
Riley Meredith continues to warm the bench even when Daniel Sams and Basil Thampi continue to be ineffective.
While he cannot be fully blamed for MI’s disastrous season as their auction strategy was as bizarre as it could get with illogical spending on injured Jofra Archer (Rs 8 Cr) and Ishan Kishan (Rs 15.25 Cr), team decisions have been on Rohit. If MI finish at the bottom of the table this season, it may very well see Rohit Sharma ending his captaincy stint after leading them to 5 IPL titles.
IPL 2022: Is captaincy BURDEN already affecting Rohit Sharma? Poor form and winless run could force MI captain to step down