Indian cricket team skipper Rohit Sharma© AFP
It has been a tough few months for Indian cricket team skipper Rohit Sharma. In the last seven matches since the start of the Test season against Bangladesh, India have managed to post a 250-plus total just four times and a major reason behind that has been the poor show from Rohit and Virat Kohli. Rohit (142 runs in six Tests) has struggled massively and his fortunes did not change in the second Test match against Australia where he once again left experts and fans disappointed. In an interview with Insidesport, former South Africa cricketer Daryll Cullinan launched a brutal attack on Rohit as he called the India captain ‘overweight’ and a ‘flat-track bully’ while adding that he is not a “long-term option”.
“Rohit is overweight and not in good physical condition to endure a long Test series. Compare him to Virat, and the difference in their fitness levels is striking. Rohit is no longer a long-term option for India.”
In the interview, Cullinan said that Rohit is a ‘flat tack bully’ who had a brilliant record at home. However, he pointed out that he has an issue against bounce and that leads to a lot of his dismissals.
Meanwhile, former Australian cricketer Matthew Hayden urged the Indian batters to bat “better and for time” during the third Brisbane Test against Australia starting from December 14 onwards.
After a disappointing batting performance against the pink-ball at Adelaide, Team India would be desperate for big runs and a series lead-providing win against Aussies at Brisbane.
Following a humiliating loss to the visitors by 295 runs at Perth’s Optus Stadium, which saw Jasprit Bumrah, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli and Yashasvi Jaiswal deliver standout contributions, the hosts bounced back big time as top bowling spells from red-ball magicians Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins and a counter-attacking ton from Travis Head helped them flatten India by 10 wickets, chasing down an extremely easy target of 19 runs.
Though India delivered a fine performance at Perth with 487/6 declared in the second innings thanks to exploits from KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli, Team India’s batting has largely looked listless since the start of their home Test season against Bangladesh and New Zealand.
(With ANI inputs)
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