Rohit Sharma’s Test debut witnessed the historic 2013 farewell series of Indian cricketing god Sachin Tendulkar. Rohit also celebrated the series in style by smashing centuries in successive Test matches against the toothless West Indies attack. Since then, more than two years have passed on, Rohit is still cautiously guarding those two tons despite having 16 more Tests under his belt. What has gone wrong for the stylish right-hander after such a blistering start to his Test career?
The upcoming Test series in West Indies will be a test of temperament for the young blood of Indian cricket, with most of them being relatively new to the Caribbean conditions. Rohit despite being among the few of those who have played earlier in the Caribbean, his poor Test average will force the team management to face a selection dilemma while choosing the best playing eleven. And if the Mumbai batsman finds his place in the team, it will be quite interesting to watch if he continues a long run and does the talking with his trusted willow.
“If I’d have known what’s happened, I wouldn’t have been in this situation, for sure,” Rohit earlier this month told in an interview. “Yes, there’s been a lack of form since then. But again, I’m a sort of person who doesn’t dwell on the past, because the future is bright. We’ve got so many games coming up. I believe in certain things and I will follow them,” he further said, looking at the prospect of redeeming his Test career on the upcoming four-match tour of the West Indies.
Shikhar Dhawan’s inconsistent nature has become a pain in the ass for Indian team management, and in Rohit, they have another star-on-paper whose repeated failures can make the situation even worse. The two centuries in Rohit’s debut Test seems to be the only light so far in the dark corridors of his Test career. He is obviously an asset in ODI format but Test cricket still makes him nervous.
If Rohit Sharma makes it to the final XI he will have to bat lower down the order, at No. 5 or 6 — a slot where batsmen adjust their innings according to the situation, be it supporting a tired top-order mate or carry on with the tail.
The Mumbai Indians captain in the longest format of the game, was also given a chance to bat at No. 3, ahead of Cheteshwar Pujara, but he failed to hold on to the position. Yes, it’s true that Pujara too has been inconsistent, but the general belief on his credibility in Test cricket way higher than that of Rohit’s.
But why Rohit often fails to prove his credentials in Test cricket? Maybe his habit of throwing wicket at wrong times has done the damage. For him, it’s quite easy to shift focus between ODIs to T20Is, but Test cricket needs completely different mindset.
Rohit has all the shots in his repertoire and can accelerate his innings beautifully in limited-overs cricket. But Test cricket needs temperament, it’s all about your resilience and patience, you have to keep continue doing the same thing every over again and again.
If you have the ability to leave the ball outside off stump, you have an effective weapon to become a master in Test cricket. Probably Rohit has not been able to execute this particular approach well enough. Tackling spin with the red ball is equally challenging as playing it against fast bowlers. The ball will keep moving for a relatively longer time and that’s why runs scored in the longest format of the game earn a batsman elite status in his career.
If you look at the numbers, Rohit Sharma’s Test record hasn’t got much flare to impress since his first two innings. He plundered a brilliant 177 and a superlative 111 against West Indies in his first two innings and since then only manage to score a total of 896 runs.
He added only 608 runs in 27 innings at an average of 22.51 apart from the first two innings score, which is obviously below par, especially in the modern era. Not only that, his average away from home – in Australia (28.83), South Africa (11.25) and England (17) – is a shame for an exciting match winner in limited-overs cricket.
His Test average looks decent in Sri Lanka with 33.66 and 40.66 in New Zealand, but it’s because of a few unbeaten innings.
Question marks raised over his Test credentials from time to time, 29-year-old Rohit has to realize that he is running a race against time to be a regular starter in Test, he has to remember selectors are looking at the young generation with utmost care now.
This West Indies tour will be make-or-break, his Test future completely hangs on the upcoming Caribbean excavation.
You cannot doubt Rohit Sharma’s potential as a batsman, the problem remains with his application. Rohit also will not like the idea to be remembered as a batsman who couldn’t prove his worth in the longest format of the game. Test cricket still is the benchmark for any batsman.