‘I just wanted to see him more involved’, Ravi Shastri gives his VERDICT on Rohit Sharma captaincy
New Delhi: Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri feels that captain Rohit Sharma was too ‘quiet’ during India’s loss to Australia in the pink-ball Test at Adelaide. India were thoroughly outplayed, suffering a heavy 10-wicket defeat that hurt their chances of making it to the World Test Championship (WTC) Final. Shastri hopes Rohit will be more active and engaged in the upcoming matches and believes India can bounce back in the five-match series.
Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri feels that captain Rohit Sharma was too ‘quiet’ during India’s loss to Australia in the pink-ball Test at Adelaide. “That’s the reason I want him at the top. That’s where he can be aggressive and expressive. Just thought he was a little too subdued, just seeing his body language. The fact that he didn’t make runs, I don’t think there was enough on the field there. I just wanted to see him more involved, and a little more animated. You still have to believe that you can bounce back in this series.
You have seen with these two teams, that the counter-punch is almost immediate. It’s happened over the last 10 years. You lose one, you win the next, but you have to have the belief,” Shastri told the broadcasters. India were outplayed by Australia, suffering a 10-wicket loss that dented their World Test Championship (WTC) Final hopes. However, Shastri remains optimistic, believing India can bounce back in the five-match series.
Shastri also suggested that India should learn from Australia’s approach and reflect on their weaknesses to improve ahead of the third Test. The former India head coach recommended that KL Rahul could move back to the middle-order, with Rohit returning to open the batting.
Shastri also praised Pat Cummins’ choice of words after the Perth Test. “I like the choice of words by Pat Cummins in Perth. He said we weren’t good enough, but we weren’t as bad as the scoreboard showed. The reason I say good choice of words is because it wasn’t about what people said or what was written about, it was about what the scoreboard showed. I think India can take a leaf out of that. It would mean Rahul would go back to the middle order. But that’s what he was going to do if Rohit Sharma had started from the first Test itself,” Shastri said.