Former Indian player Sanjay Manjrekar opened on skipper Rohit Sharmawith the bat ahead of the second Test in Adelaide on Tuesday December 3. Manjrekar felt that Rohit is a backfoot player with the ability to play the ball late, but he was doing the exact opposite during the three-match Test series. against New Zealand. He further thanked Rohit for working on his front foot in the nets ahead of the pink ball Test.
Notably, Rohit scored 91 runs in three home Tests against New Zealand. The right-handed batter scored just 133 runs in his five Tests, including just one half-century. The 37-year-old returned with three off 11 deliveries against Australia PM XI in the warm-up match in Canberra.
Sanjay Manjrekar told ESPNcricinfo:
“The only thing I saw in the New Zealand series was that he, like Virat Kohli, was only looking to go out on the right foot, but not take a big step. And when it comes to countries like Australia and South Africa, it starts to get you into trouble.
“So he's not a great forward stride player but he wasn't going on the back foot at all or playing late but I just saw him slipping a little bit where he was training in the nets and it looked like he was telling himself to put his front foot forward if he wants to continue playing forward or just play close to the ball,” he added.
The reaction comes amid an ongoing debate over Rohit's batting place after KL Rahul grabbed the opportunity with both hands in Perth, scoring 26 and 77 in two innings.
Manjrekar further warned Rohit Sharma over an uneven bounce in Australia. The cricketer-turned-commentator advised him to play the shot with utmost caution. He said:
“I think that’s what he needs to do and watch out for that jump shot that got him in trouble. It's an instinctive shot that he plays on a short length and will bounce a bit more than the kind of instinct he has to play a pull shot, having batted mainly in the subcontinent.
Rohit has 2,033 runs in Australia across all formats. In total, he has 3,571 runs against the Australians, including nine tons.
“The stupidest thing you can do is dismiss champion players” – Michael Hussey on Rohit Sharma
Former Australian batter Michael Hussey recently backed Rohit Sharma to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series. He said (via NDTV):
“They (Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli) have a lot of appeal and quality. The stupidest thing you can do is discard champion players. We've seen it time and time again in the past: they get criticized, but they get through it and perform really well. So I support them to do well in Australia. They are proud Indians and proud Test players. But I still think Australia will be favorites.
Rohit is now reportedly keen to fulfill his promises after Virat Kohli returned to form, smashing his first ton after 16 months in the first Test in Perth. India won the match by 295 runs. Like Rohit, Kohli had scored 93 runs in three Tests against New Zealand.
Edited by Sudeshna Banerjee
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