Legendary Indian batter Sunil Gavaskar expressed his reservation about Rohit Sharma's initial footwork, especially while facing deliveries that curve back into the Indian skipper.
In Team India’s opening match at the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, Rohit fell victim to an LBW dismissal, recording a six-ball duck as Australia's pacer Josh Hazlewood skillfully angled the ball back into him and got him out in Chennai.
Reflecting on Rohit's stellar performance in the 2019 World Cup, where the senior opener notched up five centuries, Gavaskar noted that the right-hander’s footwork has shown signs of sluggishness at the beginning of his innings, making him vulnerable to deliveries with inward movement.
Sunil Gavaskar wrote in his column for Sportstar: “This time around, which could well be his last World Cup, he has begun with a zero in the first game. The footwork is palpably slow to start with and that makes him vulnerable to the incoming delivery. If he can rediscover the 2019 form, then India will be assured of a very good start to their campaign.”
Notably, India managed to chase down the 200-run target against Australia despite a poor start, thanks to stunning fifties from KL Rahul and Virat Kohli in Chennai on October 8.
The Men in Blue have already reached Delhi to take on Afghanistan in their next CWC 2023 match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on October 11. Their next stop after that will be Ahmedabad, where the hosts will play Pakistan on October 14.
