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Team India captain Rohit Sharma has certain choices to make which favours the team before heading into the fifth and final Test match against Australia.
After suffering a 184-run loss in the fourth Test match, Rohit Sharma will have to pick his top six batsmen for the Sydney Test which will make way for Shubman Gill who was dropped from the previous match.
With 866 runs in Test cricket in 2024, Gill is second only to Yashasvi Jaiswal in the list of highest scorers among Indian batters in the last one year, and one can`t blame the elegant player if he is feeling hard done by at being asked to sit out at MCG.
Rohit, though, informed that the team management explained to Gill the reasons behind his omission in Melbourne. He was dropped to ensure better balance in the playing XI with Washington Sundar`s bowling being an additional advantage.
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The question that arises now is how Rohit accommodates Gill in playing XI for the Sydney game, which India needs to win at all costs to keep alive their slim chances of qualifying for next year`s World Test Championship (WTC) Final.
Washington did himself no harm by scoring a 50 and was involved in a crucial hundred-plus stand with centurion Nitish Kumar Reddy. And if his bowling was penetrative enough, he would have certainly bowled more overs.
SCG has traditionally been a track that assists spinners as the match progresses and hence either Washington or Tanush Kotian is certain to play alongside Ravindra Jadeja unless the skipper develops sudden faith in Jaiswal`s leg breaks and decides to play the specialist batter (Gill) and not the batting all-rounder (Washington).
The Adelaide Test, played under lights with the pink Kookaburra, presented the Indian team with the most challenging circumstances and Gill, with scores of 31 and 28, looked way more comfortable than both Rohit and Virat Kohli.
The second option for Rohit Sharma could be to drop one among Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep in order to include Shubman Gill. With this, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar will be expected to bowl more overs than the Melbourne Test.
Siraj redeemed himself with a fine spell at Sydney while Akash Deep was distinctly unlucky to get just one wicket across two innings.
The third option could be Rohit Sharma benching himself if he wants to lead by example.
With just 31 runs in five innings, Rohit Sharma could sit outside which in return will provide KL Rahul to open the innings.
Taking a back seat to allow the team to move forward is a call that can only be taken if the heart is in the right place.
(With PTI Inputs)
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