It is a rare phenomenon that Rohit Sharma is criticised for his captaincy. The right-handed batter has won five IPL titles with Mumbai Indians, and he recently ended India’s ICC trophy title drought after leading them to their second T20 World Cup triumph. However, the 37-year-old is not having a good time off late as under his leadership, India’s prized possession — home Test record, has suffered a major blow. India have lost their first home Test series loss in 12 years, after facing defeats in the first two Tests of the three-match series against New Zealand.
Rohit is also having a lean run with the bat. He was able to score just eight runs in the second Test against the BlackCaps in Pune. During the game, Rohit was also criticised for his defensive captaincy, and opening the field up while the spinners were bowling.
Former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has also now criticised Rohit’s captaincy in the second Test, saying he was more of a reactive leader in the game.
“Not at his best. I thought he had a very tough Test match, he did all he could. I could see there was a lot of pressure on him, add to the fact, that he did not get many runs as well. So overall, it was not a great Test match. He will reflect and think, ‘what could I have done better? Was I a reactive captain or a pro-active captain?'” Dinesh Karthik said on Cricbuzz.
“There is a fine line, this Test match was one where he was chasing the ball a little bit. He tried his best with whatever he could, but you have to say it wasn’t the best game for either him or Team India,” he added.
What Rohit Sharma said after loss in the Pune Test
India faced a 113-run loss in the second Test against New Zealand in Pune after the hosts put up a dismal batting performance in both the innings. Mitchell Santner wreaked havoc as he took 13 wickets in the Test.
After the loss, Rohit Sharma said, “We are allowed one such performance in 12 years. If we were collapsing like this on a regular basis then we would not have been winning at home. We have a lot of expectations. We are expected to win every game at our home, and it is because of our performances.”
Rohit Sharma also said that it was a “collective failure” after his side stumbled to a loss in the Test against the Kiwis.
“It’s a collective failure. I’m not somebody who would blame just the batters or the bowlers,” Rohit said in the post-match presentation.
“Didn’t think we batted well enough to get runs on the board. You’ve got to pick 20 wickets to win, yes, but batters have to put runs on the board. Was a great fightback to restrict them to 250-odd but we knew it was going to be challenging,” Rohit said.
India and New Zealand will now square off in the third Test at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. The match will be played from November 1-5.