Knives out for Rohit Sharma amid captaincy uncertainty for Australia Test tour

The ramifications of India’s historic 3-0 home Test series defeat to New Zealand are beginning to be felt with doubts already being raised about the captaincy of Rohit Sharma for the upcoming Test tour of Australia.

Most Indian cricket followers had been busy planning for the five-match series in Australia which begins at the end of this month, possibly looking at the recently concluded New Zealand series as a glorified warm-up.

But by the end of the third Test in Mumbai, India had been cooked to a crisp. Their main batsmen captain Rohit and Virat Kohli had failed monumentally, star spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and, to a lesser extent, Ravindra Jadeja outbowled by opposition spinners and their hopes of a third straight World Test Championship final more or less done and dusted.

India had lost series by bigger margins and for longer periods in the past but this was different. Not only because it was India’s first ever 3-0 Test whitewash at home, but also because they were outplayed in all departments in all matches by an under strength New Zealand team.

The historic setback has put the Indian cricket board in a quandary as the squad for the Australia tour has already been announced.

Rohit is leading the side there again, with India now desperate to avoid a whitewash in a country where they won on their last two tours.

Even more intriguing is the issue of Rohit’s availability for the opening leg of the tour. The 37-year-old batsman is said to be unlikely to feature in the first and/or the second Test for personal reasons. If that happens, India will most likely be captained by fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who has been named vice-captain and who has already shown leadership potential.

Another player who could be entrusted with Test captaincy is wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant, who has been by far the most reliable player in the team home and away recently.

Rohit’s potential absence has resulted in some hand wringing, mainly due of the dire straits the team finds itself in.

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar said if Rohit is not available for the opening Test, the next in line should be named skipper for the entire tour.

“It is important for the captain to play the first Test match. It’s different if he is injured, but if he is not available, then the deputy leader will be under a lot of pressure,” Gavaskar told Sports Tak channel.

“If Rohit Sharma is not available, I feel the selection committee should tell him to play only as a player whenever he returns. And they should name the vice-captain as captain for the tour. Because there has to be clarity. Especially because we have lost 3-0, the leader has to be there. Had India won 3-0, it would have been a different case.”

Senior members of the Indian cricket establishment generally refrain from taking aim at the captain, even after defeat. But the extreme nature of the loss to New Zealand has thrown all restraint out the window.

The series whitewash brought out some uncomfortable truths about the Indian team – they still don’t play their best team according to the playing conditions.

In the opening Test in Bengaluru, India decided to bat first on a wet pitch in overcast conditions, having picked an extra spinner for some reason, and were shot out for 46.

India decided to bench batsman KL Rahul even though he had better numbers than Rohit and Kohli, admittedly not something to brag about as both seniors average less than 30 over the past 12 months. They brought in all-rounder Washington Sundar who was not even part of their original plans. All this while, their most valuable cricketer in Indian conditions with bat and ball – Axar Patel – did not get a single game.

In the second and third Tests in Pune and Mumbai, India went for rank turners even though their own batsmen have shown to be woefully incapable of handling any kind of spin on a turning surface – as was the case during the recent ODI series defeat in Sri Lanka.

On the field, Rohit went ultra defensive early on and gave New Zealand easy singles in the second and third Tests even when a new batsman came in. The lack of confidence and poor planning became evident in the second innings of the third Test when main fast bowler Mohammad Siraj did not bowl a single over even after India had taken the lead.

Rohit is running out of support as leader of the team and even though he is expected to return as captain in the Australia Tests, the blot of the home series defeat has likely sullied his leadership record permanently.