India captain Rohit Sharma’s form with the bat has been a cause for concern for the fans and team as well as he has scored only one half-century, making only 89 runs at an average of 17 in five matches in T20 World Cup 2022 thus far.
The India captain hasn't looked out of form but his decision to take an aggressive route at the top has worked against him. Also, KL Rahul not going hard at the top and the lack of rotation of strike has put pressure on the captain, who is looking to take the onus on himself to make the most of the powerplay.
Now that India is scheduled to play England in the second semifinal of the tournament at Adelaide on November 10, former India spinner Harbhajan Singh said on Sunday that though Rohit Sharma has been struggling for consistency, he hopes that the skipper comes good in the semifinal.
"There is no doubt that Rohit Sharma is not batting well. Suryakumar Yadav is shining bright in the night sky in Australia and that is a positive sign for India. Yadav’s batting on tough pitches proves how great a player he is and I hope that he keeps repeating this. Virat Kohli is not shouldering the batting line-up anymore. There are other players in the order - KL Rahul has been scoring runs. While Rohit might not have hit big runs till now, one can only hope that he can come good in the last two matches," Harbhajan Singh told Aajtak.
Harbhajan Singh said it's important to stick to the basics and remain calm in the big stages, urging India to continue what they have done well so far in T20 World Cup 2022.
"When a team reaches these moments (semi-finals) it only hopes that it has two more good days. The key to handling these situations is that you do not take extra pressure on yourself and follow your normal routines and get your basics right. I only hope that the way Suryakumar Yadav and Arshdeep have shone, the others do it too. The Cup is just two steps away and you have to absorb pressure well to win the trophy.
There will be a time when you have to absorb pressure and hit back later. I think that this is the right team that we have now and we should win the World Cup," he added.
Apart from Harbhajan Singh, India batting great Sunil Gavaskar also said that he hopes Rohit Sharma is saving himself for the semi-finals and final of the tournament. Rohit’s only half-century came against the Netherlands and that too was a scratchy innings.
Sunil Gavaskar told India Today: "Well, let's just hope he is saving the runs for the next two matches. They are going to be the biggest matches. In a group game, you know there's another game to follow, so you maybe sometimes try a little too much and get out. Now, these are knockout games. In a knockout game, you can't afford to experiment too much. You need to be at your best. Let's hope that Rohit comes good.”
Furthermore, Gavaskar said Rohit's decision to be ultra-aggressive has not worked in his favor, especially in Australia where the boundaries are bigger than normal.
"What's been happening is, he himself, as the captain of the team, has set this template in the first 6 overs to go bang, bang, and bang. Suddenly, he can't be seen looking to work the ball around. He is always a good puller of the ball. But on Australian boundaries, that pull shot has got him into trouble.
We saw that two years ago as well, he got out twice by playing the pull shot after having scored 40-50 runs (in Tests). That's got him into trouble again. In a T20 format with just just one fielder in the first 6 overs, he has got to be mindful of the fielder and play the pull shot. It's a productive shot for him, let's not forget that," Gavaskar added.
(India Today and AajTak inputs)
