India captain Rohit Sharma‘s hunger for playing Test cricket might be there but it isn’t being seen in his actions. The skipper produced one of his most woeful performances on an away tour as India succumbed to a 1-3 defeat against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Rohit’s below-par performances with the bat saw him even being benched for the final match in Sydney. While the 37-year-old has maintained that he intends to continue playing Test cricket, former India cricketer Sanjay Bangar wants the commitment to be reflected in his actions.
Rohit has been advised by many, including India coach Gautam Gambhir, to play Ranji Trophy, though there’s no confirmation on the same by him. Bangar, in a chat on Star Sports, reminded Rohit that even the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane – sidelined from India’s Test team – have shown hunger for red-ball cricket by consistently playing the Ranji Trophy.
“When you are 37 years old, every failure hurts because a cricketer is a very proud person. When he sees the kind of performances he’s had in the past but can’t replicate them, and when young players are performing well, these factors weigh heavily on his mind. This might have influenced his decision. He needs to determine whether he still has the hunger to play Test cricket. If he does, that hunger must reflect in his actions,” Bangar said.
“There’s been a lot of talk about playing domestic cricket. Players like Pujara and Rahane, who are on par with Rohit Sharma in stature, have been dropped in the past but have shown their hunger by playing in domestic cricket. Even today, they are sweating it out on domestic grounds, which is a big drop from the intensity of international cricket. Rohit has expressed his desire to continue playing for India and has said,” I am not going anywhere; I still want to play.’ If he follows through and performs in domestic cricket, no one can stop him. But that form and hunger must be evident,” he added.
Bangar also criticised the Indian team management for being reactive and not proactive in the selection of players.
“Nitish Reddy’s unexpected performance put the team in a dilemma. The combination of Nitish Reddy with Washington Sundar or Ravindra Jadeja created confusion. When there is an in-form player, it’s hard to drop him. The team management seemed to react as the series progressed rather than being proactive. On those pitches, decisions should have been made based on the immediate requirements. A more proactive approach could have resulted in better team combinations,” he asserted.
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