Indian cricket fans were in for a huge surprise when BCCI announced the teams for the upcoming Team India tour of Australia on Monday. The name of Rohit Sharma, vice captain and limited test starter, was missing from the teams in all three formats. Rohit has missed the last two games for the Mumbai Indians due to a problem and it appears that the decision not to name him on the teams was related to his injury. “The BCCI medical team will continue to monitor the progress of Rohit Sharma and Ishant Sharma,” read the last line of the official BCCI statement.
What made the whole situation puzzling was that the Mumbai Indians posted two tweets, showing Rohit Sharma batting online. In the video posted shortly after the teams were announced, Rohit can be seen hurtling into the nets while hitting.
This prompted former India captain and veteran commentator Sunil Gavaskar to ask for some clarity on the whole issue. Gavaskar spoke during the post-match program of the IPL match between Kings XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders on host station Star Sports.
“We are talking about the test matches, which are a month and a half,” Gavaskar said.
“And if he’s practicing on the nets for the Mumbai Indians, then I honestly don’t know what kind of injury it is. I think a little bit of transparency, a little bit of openness about what the problem really is with him will help everyone, ”he added.
Gavaskar referred to KXIP starter Mayank Agarwal, who has also been offside in the last two games of his franchise, but has been named on the teams for all three formats.
“The Indian cricket fan deserves to know, more than anything else. Franchisees, I get it. They don’t want to shake hands. They don’t want to give opponents any psychological advantage. But we are talking about the Indian team here. Even Mayank Agarwal, for example. For an Indian cricket fan, you have to know what happens to two of your key players, ”Gavaskar said.
Rohit Sharma made an impressive return to test cricket in 2019 when he opened innings in the series at home against South Africa and Bangladesh. He was expected to face a tough test in New Zealand, but had to miss the series due to injury. India was defeated 2-0 by the Kiwis. The tour against Australia is highly anticipated and everyone wanted to see how Rohit would fare when he starts batting out of India in red ball cricket.
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