Former Australian captain and cricket expert Mark Taylor did not hold back his opinions on Rohit Sharma’s absence in the fifth and final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Speaking to Triple M Cricket, Taylor criticized India’s claim to “rest” Rohit, suggesting the term masks a much simpler truth: the Indian captain was dropped due to poor form.
“Just Say It’s Fallen” – Mark Taylor’s hard-hitting version of Rohit Sharma
Taylor expressed disbelief at the decision to rest Rohit Sharma, especially in such a critical match. He called the explanation a poor attempt to soften the blow of a captain’s exclusion.
“The bottom line is that the captain of a country does not opt out of the final Test match, the decisive Test match of a series. There’s no doubt they’ve dropped it and I don’t know why they don’t just say it,” Taylor said.
He further explained that being dropped is not a crime in professional cricket. “That doesn’t mean they’ve abandoned it forever. It simply means that you have been eliminated from this test because you are not fit. That’s not a crime. “That’s professional sports,” Taylor added.
Rohit Sharma’s performance in the ongoing series has been far from his usual standards. In three matches, he managed only 31 runs at a paltry average of 6.20. Such a streak led him to make way for Shubman Gill in the playing eleven.
Rohit’s absence also saw Jasprit Bumrah take over as captain. Bumrah has demonstrated his leadership abilities before, having led India to victory in the first Test of the series in Perth.
Bumrah replaces Rohit Sharma at SCG
In the absence of Rohit, Jasprit Bumrah has taken over as captain of the Indian team. Bumrah earlier captained the Indian team and claimed victory during the first Test of the series in Perth.
At the toss, Bumrah seemed focused and optimistic about the challenge ahead. “We look to bat first. We have played some good cricket. The last game was exciting. The herb does not seem spicy. We have always learned to digest defeats. We are looking forward to this,” Bumrah said confidently.
India made two changes for the game. Shubman Gill replaced Rohit Sharma, while pacer Prasidh Krishna replaced Akash Deep, who is recovering from a back injury.
The SCG Test is a decisive match for India. A victory keeps their hopes of qualifying for the World Test Championship final alive. However, a defeat or a draw would destroy their dreams and mark the end of their journey in this cycle’s campaign.
The cryptic tone of Sundaresan’s comment only fueled speculation. Fans debated whether there was more to Rohit’s absence than met the eye.
For India, this SCG test is critical. A win keeps their hopes alive for the World Test Championship final. However, a defeat or a draw would end their journey.
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