After captain Rohit Sharma chose to take a break, Jasprit Bumrah will captain India in the fifth and final Test match against Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Friday. According to a story in The Indian Express, Rohit, 37, informed head coach Gautam Gambhir and selectors chairman Ajit Agarkar of his desire to “opt out,” to which they responded amicably.
Rohit briefly appeared during India’s practice session on the day of the 2024–25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy final, one day after reports of disturbances in the Indian dressing room surfaced. During the pre-match press conference shortly after, Gambhir denied those rumors, although he did not say whether Rohit would play tomorrow. “I don’t believe it’s anything conventional, and everything is good with Rohit. The presence of the head coach should be sufficient. We will examine the wicket and make a decision tomorrow,” he stated.
The response essentially confirmed Rohit’s absence from the series finale, and this thought was reinforced throughout the day. While all the hitters enjoyed a lengthy and prolonged session, Rohit’s batting was limited. Gambhir, Rohit, and Bumrah were observed engaging in a lengthy conversation in the nets. He batted while wearing an Indian sweater, essentially a warm-up exercise.
Currently, Bumrah, who helped India win by a commanding 295 runs in Perth in November, will probably be the one stepping out for the toss tomorrow at 4.30 AM India time. And with good reason. No one is better than Bumrah to put India’s hopes and campaign back on track when the series is on the line. India must win the SCG Test to tie the series and save the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Rohit is unlikely to continue playing Test matches in the upcoming World Test Championship, so if he does not show up on Friday, the MCG Test may be his final one.
India needs to win. The Sydney Test
Additionally, Rohit’s “rest” makes room for Shubman Gill to return at No. 3. Despite scoring 28 and 31 in Adelaide, the young Indian player didn’t do anything wrong to be dropped; yet, ‘combination’ forced him to be left out. The innings will be opened by KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal, who combined for a record 201 runs at the Optus Stadium in the series opener.
Rohit’s second half of 2024 has been terrible despite his strong start to the year, drawing the Test series in South Africa, defeating England 4-1, and scoring two hundreds. His performance has plummeted to an all-time low; the captain averages 24.56 in Test matches. He failed with the bat miserably, scoring 91 runs in three Tests against New Zealand as India suffered their first series defeat on home soil after 12 years.
Even worse, Rohit’s 31 runs from 3 Test matches, scoring 3, 6, 10, 3, and 9, are the lowest of any visiting batter’s returns in Australia. Whether rested or dropped, Rohit’s choice may be considered a first in Indian cricket history because no skipper has ever retreated with so much at stake. India has had leaders, even some good ones like Sourav Ganguly, MS Dhoni, and Virat Kohli, who have struggled with form. Still, the skipper has never quit, particularly in a series against Australia.
Rohit Sharma will finish his Test career with India after scoring 4301 runs at an average of 40.57 from 67 games, including 12 hundred if this is it. Rohit has guided India to high-profile series victories over Australia and England at home since taking over as captain of the Test squad in January 2022 following the resignation of Virat Kohli. India advanced to the second World Test Championship final under his leadership and placed second.
