India’s Adelaide drubbing puts ‘subdued’ Rohit under scrutiny

AFP | Adelaide

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India’s second Test drubbing in Adelaide showed that captain Rohit Sharma was failing to bring the aggression needed to beat Australia on their own turf, leading cricket luminaries said.

The tourists were thrashed by 10 wickets inside three days of the pink ball match on Sunday, as Aus-tralia levelled the series 1-1.

Rohit, 37, returned to lead the team after missing India’s opening win in Perth due to the birth of his second child, but crashed out with scores of three and six. He had dropped down to number six in the batting order from his usual opening slot in favour of KL Rahul, who played a key part in the Perth Test victory.

Former India all-rounder Ravi Shastri said Rohit should revert to the top to allow him to play to his attacking strengths.

“Thought he was a little too subdued, just seeing his body language,” Shastri told broadcasters on Sunday.

“That’s the reason I want him at the top. That’s where he can be aggressive and expressive... I just wanted to see him more involved, and a little more animated.”

Former opener Aakash Chopra was more blunt in his criticism of the skipper.

“Let’s call a spade a spade,” he said. “We saw defensive captaincy. He allowed the match to drift.” India’s loss was greeted with derision by newspapers yesterday, with a headline in the Times of India calling the third-day finish “short and not so sweet”.