India captain Rohit Sharma is yet to confirm his fitness for Mumbai's elite Ranji Trophy Group A match against Jammu and Kashmir, which is scheduled to start on January 23. The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has decided to contact Rohit Sharma directly to confirm his availability before finalizing. The band.
The 37-year-old has been under immense pressure after his form in the recent Test series against New Zealand and Australia. He scored just 31 runs in the three Tests he played against Australia. The series of low scores led to Rohit ruling himself out of India's squad for the final Test match at the SCG.
There are no official talks between Rohit Sharma and Mumbai Cricket Association regarding participation
Rohit Sharma is focusing on improving his batting standard after poor performances in recent matches. Sharma was seen batting alongside Mumbai captain Ajinkya Rahane at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday. He is expected to resume training soon, but it is still unclear whether he will play in the next Ranji Trophy match.
Speculations about Rohit retiring after the Border-Gavaskar series have been dismissed as he wants to continue playing Test cricket. Despite his attendance at the Mumbai Ranji training session, no formal discussions took place between Rohit and the Mumbai Cricket Association regarding his participation.
Mumbai Cricket Association selectors are in touch with Rohit Sharma regarding his availability
The Mumbai Cricket Association wants to finalize and announce the Ranji Trophy squad on January 20. As part of the standard process, selectors will confirm the availability of all players, including Rohit. An MCA official said that Rohit will be contacted regarding his availability.
“The selectors are expected to announce the squad on January 20 during which they will follow due process to check the availability of each player. Rohit will also be contacted around the time of selection,” a Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) official said. He told PTI.
Young Indian batsmen Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant have confirmed their readiness for the upcoming Ranji Trophy matches.
Jaiswal will represent Mumbai against Jammu and Kashmir despite his impressive outing in Australia. Gill, who scored 93 runs in five innings during the Australia series, will play for Punjab in their match against Karnataka in Bengaluru. Meanwhile, Pant will play his first match for Ranji since the 2017-18 season.
Rohit Sharma had a forgettable 2024 in Test cricket
Rohit Sharma performed well in the five-match home series against England earlier in 2024. The right-handed batsman scored 400 runs, including two centuries, against England. However, his form declined in the subsequent home series against Bangladesh and New Zealand.
The Indian skipper managed to score just 133 runs in 10 innings, including just one half-century. His struggles continued in Australia where he scored just 31 runs in five innings. By the end of the year, Rohit had scored 619 runs in 14 Tests at a modest average of 24.76.
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