Former Australian captain and cricket analyst Mark Taylor has not held back on his views on Rohit Sharma's absence from the fifth and final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Speaking to Triple M Cricket, Taylor criticized India's claim of “resting” Rohit, suggesting that the term hides a much simpler truth: the Indian skipper was dropped due to poor form.
“Just say it's been dropped” – Mark Taylor Plant's stance on Rohit Sharma
Taylor expressed his disbelief at the decision to rest Rohit Sharma, especially in such a crucial match. He described the explanation as a poor attempt to mitigate the blow of the captain's exclusion.
“The bottom line is that the nation's captain is not opting out of the final Test match, which is the deciding Test match of the series. There's no doubt he's been dropped, I don't know why they're not saying that,” Taylor said.
He further clarified that falling is not a crime in professional cricket. “That doesn't mean he's been dropped forever. It just means he's been dropped from this test because he's out of his league. That's not a crime. This is a professional sport,” Taylor added.
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Rohit Sharma's performance in the ongoing series has been far from his usual standards. In three matches, he has managed just 31 runs at a paltry average of 6.20. This streak led him to make way for Shubman Gill in the starting XI.
Rohit's absence also led to the rise of Jasprit Bumrah as captain. Bumrah has demonstrated his leadership mettle before, having led India to victory in the first Test of the series in Perth.
Bumrah replaces Rohit Sharma at SCG
In Rohit's absence, Jasprit Bumrah took over as captain of the Indian team. Bumrah had previously led the Indian team to victory during the first Test of the series in Perth.
During the draw, Bumrah looked focused and optimistic about the challenge that lies ahead. “We are looking forward to batting first. We have played some good cricket. The last match was exciting. The grass does not look hot. We have always learned how to digest defeats. We will look forward to that,” Bumrah said confidently.
India made two changes for the match. Shubman Gill replaced Rohit Sharma, while pacer Prasidh Krishna replaced Akash Deb, who is suffering from a back injury.
The SCG Test is a crucial encounter for India. The win keeps their hopes of qualifying for the World Test Championship final alive. However, a loss or a draw would shatter their dreams and mark the end of their journey in this tournament's campaign.
The ambiguous tone of Sundaresan's remark only served to fuel speculation. Fans have debated whether there is more to Rohit's absence than meets the eye.
For India, this SCG Test is crucial. Victory keeps their hopes alive in the World Test Championship final. But a loss or a draw will end their journey.
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