I am absolutely appalled by the way the Indian media, along with our so-called pundits have time and again criticised Rohit Sharma for his batting failures. Why is he the only one who has been constantly singled out as the reason behind Team India’s recently adopted rotation policy in Australia? Was it just because our captain cool said it was necessary for Rohit to get a few games in the initial stages of this tri-series? I strongly disagree.
Rohit has worked his way into this star-studded Indian line-up and he deserves to be in the playing eleven. Two-time Man-of-the-Series in 2011, both against the West Indies; Rohit has steered the Indian team to crucial victories when most seniors were rested, including Dhoni. He did this when all others failed, not to forget the stand-in captain, Suresh Raina. The statistics that popped up on the television screen this morning show exactly why he should not be made the scapegoat; as if denying him a Test debut wasn’t enough already when the team went through a series of whitewashes. For the first time ever, I agreed with Ravi Shastri, when he mentioned how Rohit automatically qualifies to play in the side ahead of the CSK lad. Frankly, Raina has not been at his best off late, but is yet considered to be an important aspect of this one-day outfit. With all due respect to his fielding skills and keeping in mind his batting position, I would still give him the benefit of doubt. But if the rotation policy has been devised ONLY to give Rohit a chance, this does not seem fair, in my opinion. The idea behind this strategy was to “rest” seniors, but why pick on Rohit as the reason? Is it not possible to rest Raina for a game or two, and go ahead with all three openers?
Cricket is a cruel game; you never know when the axe is on you! Harbhajan Singh can probably describe this feeling better. It is sad to see how Rohit’s talent has been ignored all the time. Not giving him credit where it’s due, denying him a Test opportunity, and oh, I must not forget to mention how he wasn’t a part of India’s 2011 World Cup-winning squad. Yes, he has been inconsistent at times, but every cricketer has gone through a bad patch in his career at some point. What's the whole fuss about Rohit Sharma's form? Has he NEVER scored runs for India when the team was in dire need? Or maybe Dhoni is just too fond of his CSK teammate, eh?
And before anyone asks me, (Yes! I am obsessed with Rohit Sharma)...
