Former Indian cricketer Saba Karim wasn’t impressed with the way Indian captain Rohit Sharma’s numbers with the bat have started to fall behind ever since he took up captaincy in all three formats of the game.
However, Karim admitted that Rohit has been doing well as Team India captain, but stressed the fact that a captain becomes a good or great captain with the support of the team, so he must contribute personally and keep adding value to the national team with his batting performance.
The right-handed opener scored 44, 1, and 5 in the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka, while he fell for 29 in the first Test at Mohali. Well, the former BCCI official said that Rohit must perform with the bat, and the upcoming day-night Test in Bengaluru will be a challenge for the captain.
The second and final Test between India and Sri Lanka will be played with the pink ball under the lights in Bengaluru on March 12 and Karim said that it will be a challenge that Rohit should overcome and return among the runs.
Karim said on the Khelneeti podcast: “It will be very important for Rohit Sharma to perform with the bat. He has led very well but you become a good or a great captain with the support of the team. He needs to contribute personally as well and keep adding value to the team. So yes, the next Test will be a challenge for him.”
The former India wicketkeeper also believes that India will go with the same opening combination of Rohit and Mayank Agarwal for the day-night Test in Bengaluru.
Karim concluded, “Expect India to go in with the same opening combination. Why would you want to change things after just one Test match? Mayank has scored plenty of runs in Indian conditions. He wasn’t struggling in the previous Test. But yes, he will need to convert his starts into big scores.”
