Indian Team Management Breaks Silence On Rohit Sharma's Future

Rohit Sharma and Sitanshu Kotak [Source: AP]

The word of the hour is that Rohit Sharma is retiring on July 19 from the ODI format, and so will be his international career in the sport. While nothing is official yet, media reports have been buzzing with rumours of the India veteran set to hang up his boots at the iconic Lord’s on Sunday while playing the India vs England 3rd ODI.

While multiple media agencies and close sources have stressed the retirement of Rohit Sharma, no official stance has been taken by the player himself yet. 

Recently, ahead of the final ODI, though, Sitanshu Kotak, the batting coach of Team India, shared what the Board of Control for Cricket in India thinks about Rohit’s recent performances.

Sitanshu Kotak avoids Rohit Sharma retirement probe; hope still there for big knock at Lord’s

Rohit’s recent performances have been underwhelming. The 39-year-old only managed to get 37 runs from the first two matches against England, and the struggle has been continuing since the Afghanistan series, where he scored 143 runs, but only one significant knock came from his bat. 

In that three-match series, Rohit scored 79 off 69 deliveries while the other two matches saw scores of 48 and 16.

Speaking up on Rohit Sharma and about his struggles throughout the last few matches, India’s batting coach Sitanshu Kotrak backed him for a glorious innings at Lord’s. Kotak stressed that there is no pressure on the cricketer, as the coach backed Rohit to bounce back on July 19.

"There is no pressure on Rohit he is too big a player. Lot of batters not get momentum you might see a completely different innings in Lord’s by Rohit. Wicket was little challenging, I wont use the word that he was struggling," Kotak shared during a pre-match press conference.

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Is Rohit really struggling with the bat?

While the coach avoided saying ‘struggling’, there’s a clear pattern in Rohit’s batting. The ‘hitman’ known for his flurry of boundaries and sixes from the very first ball has been playing slowly in the England series. 

He has only a strike rate of 54.41 from the two matches, and in the IND vs AFG series, too, had a strike rate of 115.32, which indicates a difference in intent and approach from the once-top opener of India.

Why are things almost over for Rohit Sharma?

According to recent revelations from The Indian Express, the Indian team management is looking for the younger generation to fill the opening spot. While Shubman Gill, the skipper, has been at one end, the Gautam Gambhir and Ajit Agarkar-led panel is thinking of Yashasvi Jaiswal as their permanent solution to replace the 39-year-old.

The 2027 ODI World Cup will be played next year, and with over a year left for the tournament, the management is looking to move over Rohit Sharma immediately after the India vs England ODI series and try out the Gill-Jaiswal duo at the fore. 

With Rohit still playing, this might not work out. Hence, as per the reports, Rohit is partially being forced to step down from the format and eventually from his legacy of 287 matches and 11,757 runs.

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