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Renowned cricket commentator and former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar believes that Rohit Sharma's interview during the Sydney Test was to set the record straight. Manjrekar believes Rohit Sharma felt the need to clarify his absence from the match, as head coach Gautam Gambhir was receiving all the credit for the decision to drop him.
Sanjay Manjrekar reveals motive behind Rohit Sharma's SCG interview
Rohit decided to opt out of fifth and final back-to-back flop show in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy forced
Prior to the Test, conflicting reports emerged in India. Some sources claimed that Rohit had opted out of the match, while others suggested he was dropped by the management due to his poor form. During the second day of the Test, Rohit addressed these speculations in an interview with Star Sports, stating that he had voluntarily opted out and that retirement was not imminent.
“But there was also another reason why he was doing that interview. To clear the air. Somewhere I think Gambhir was getting all the credit for a brave call by leaving Rohit Sharma out. He wanted to set the record straight. Let’s be honest," Manjrekar told Star Sports.
While praising the Rohit Sharma's interview, Sanjay Manjrekar also raised concerns over the captain's statement that his playing career was solely in his hands. Manjrekar also asserted that that the decision of whether a player plays or not ultimately rests with the selectors and team management.
“I loved that interview. That first bit where he said, I couldn’t have another out-of-form batter in the XI, and that’s why he opted out. But there were some other emotions too. One thing that a lot of players say is that ‘I will decide my future’. I have a problem with that. You can decide your future with regards to retirement, but somebody else has got the job to decide your future as a player and captain," he added.
“That’s the chairman of selectors. You have got to respect the hierarchy, however big you are. If the chairman of selectors is strong and he believes in the long-term health of Indian cricket, he has the power to decide whether your career should end now, or you get a few more matches, or one more series. Retirement is in your hands, but playing for India is not," he further said.
Rohit Sharma's batting struggles
Talking about Rohit's form in Tests, across the three series he has played this season, two of which were on home soil, he has scored a mere 164 runs in 15 innings, with a lowly average of 10.93 with only one half-century to his name.
His struggles was particularly evident in Australia, where he managed to score only 31 runs across five innings in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Following the double failure in MCG Test, his average plummeted to a dismal 6.20, a record low for a touring captain in a Test series in Australia with a minimum of five innings. This record was previously held by West Indies bowling legend Courtney Walsh, who averaged 7.75 during the 1996/97 tour of Australia.
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