India’s permanent ODI skipper Rohit Sharma has cleared the fitness test at National Cricket Academy (NCA), Bengaluru, a source confirmed to Sports Tak. Rohit is fit and will be available for selection for the upcoming limited-overs series against West Indies starting February 6.
An injury prevented Rohit from boarding the flight for South Africa series where he was to lead India in ODIs as the new captain after Virat Kohli was sacked by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). In his absence, KL Rahul led India in the 50-over format as the visitors faced a whitewash against Temba Bavuma’s side.
While India were facing South Africa in challenging conditions, Rohit was completing his rehabilitation to be fit for the upcoming series against the Caribbean side which will include three ODIs and three T20Is. It will be followed by another home series against Sri Lanka which will begin later in February.
Meanwhile, BCCI are yet to announce the ODI and T20I squads against Kieron Pollard’s side. The ODI series will be played in Narendra Modi stadium, Ahmedabad from February 6 to February 11 whereas the T20I series will be played at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata from February 16 to February 20.
It will be interesting to see the changes selectors make in the ODI squad after India got whitewashed by the Proteas. Even head coach Rahul Dravid had said after the series defeat that the team was missing the finishers at no.7 and no.8.
On the other hand, BCCI is yet to name Kohli’s successor after he relinquished Test captaincy following 1-2 defeat against Dean Elgar’s South Africa. Rohit is one of the frontrunners to be given the Test captaincy after taking over the leadership in white-ball format.
