Rohit Sharma, the India batter, came under scathing criticism for his poor batting form from ex-India batter-keeper Dinesh Karthik, who said that his safe space is to attack the bowlers when he feels he’s been bogged down. Instead, Karthik urged Rohit to trust his defensive technique.

The Indian captain's recent form in the longest format has come under intense criticism, and following the humiliating 0-3 series loss to New Zealand, Rohit conceded that he wasn't at his best as a skipper or as a leader.

Rohit scored only 91 runs in six innings during the three-match series against New Zealand. In the just-finished Wankhede Test, which India lost by 25 runs after failing to chase 147, Rohit Sharma scored 18 and 11.

Dinesh Karthik now thinks that 'intent' is becoming Rohit Sharma's "safe space".

"As a batter, what Rohit Sharma has done since the time he's taken over captaincy, mainly in white ball cricket, the one thing that he's infused is he's been the torchbearer for intent. He's shown aggressive intent, he's liked doing it and has been successful doing it. Now is the time when he's unsuccessful. But, my question to Rohit Sharma would be, that intent is a positive one for white ball cricket, one Indian cricket very much needed," Dinesh Karthik said on Cricbuzz.

"In this cricket, what I feel is that intent is getting him into a safe space where he feels when in trouble, use that. It's not a method where he's using it like he's using it in white ball cricket, one that the Indian team needed. Here, a lot of times, today's knock, I'm not too fussed about, but what I'm saying, in general, is, when he is beaten a couple of times when he is put under a little bit of pressure, an immediate instinct is to play an attacking shot fraught with risk. Now, with that comes the ability to get out as well," he added.

Dinesh Karthik was very straightforward, stating unequivocally that Rohit Sharma is under pressure in Test cricket with his bat not doing the talking. He also asked the senior batter to trust his defensive tactics.

"I think his safe space right now, in Rohit Sharma's case, is to attack. Then in that, he feels he is a lot more comfortable doing it because he's seen that success. But when it doesn't go right, it always will give the image that it has given so far," Dinesh Karthik said.

"So, the one thing that Rohit Sharma is not doing, which he did very well when he took up his role as an opener, is trust his technique. He went to England. He left a lot of balls. He decided that I could play shots. But what I am going to do is, anything outside the off-stump, I am going to let it go. I am going to have the mental strength to bat long. He got a 100. He got a 90," he added.

Karthik urged Rohit be go back to his defensive game as well and instead of attacking when things get tough, just see through those tough phases of play.

Dinesh Karthik said, "So, I think that's where he needs to go back to. To trust his ability to defend and see through tough faces. Yes, attack is an option. But that will only come better if you trust your technique. Because you are worried you might get out defending or playing a soft shot, you are trying to attack. Then, that is fraught with risk. Because if it doesn't come off, it looks silly."

Rohit's last Test ton came in March 2024 when he played a knock of 103 runs against England in the Dharamsala Test.