‘Unfair on some boys but…’: Gavaskar’s blunt ‘Ranji Trophy’ advice for out-of-form Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma made it clear that he is not retiring from Test cricket, clarifying that he himself stood down for the Sydney match against Australia due to his poor form. Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar wants the 37-year-old batter to play the knockout matches of the Ranji Trophy if he wants to make a comeback into the Test side.

Rohit had a disastrous Border-Gavaskar Trophy, managing just 31 runs in three Tests against Australia. He missed the series opener in Perth. However, he wasn’t able to set the stage on fire after making a comeback on the day-night Test in Adelaide.

In four out of five innings that he batted in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Rohit failed to go past single digits.

“Well, there are not much of four-day games that are available, but if there are some like the Ranji Trophy, if Mumbai do qualify for the knockout stages, he should be looking to play some matches,” Gavaskar told India Today.

“I know it’s a little bit unfair on some of the boys who’ve been playing in the initial and qualifying stages to make way for him. But in the larger interest of Indian cricket, I think if there is a spot for him to play, he should be doing that because that’s the one way that he will be giving himself time out in the middle,” he added.

‘Playing in Ranji Trophy will give him confidence’

Gavaskar also said that if Rohit Sharma plays the Ranji Trophy and spends some time in the middle, he would gain some confidence.

“It’s not just about playing 15–20 overs or 35 overs in a 50-over game. It’s about batting for a whole day, batting for 4.5 and 5 hours, and getting a big score. That is what is going to give him confidence for the Test matches,” said Gavaskar.

Due to a poor string of scores, Rohit Sharma did not take part in the New Year’s Test in Sydney. On Day 2, Rohit gave an interview to the host broadcaster, clarifying that he himself stood down after speaking to head coach Gautam Gambhir and chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar.

“Like I told you this decision is not a retirement decision nor am I going to step aside from the game, there is no such decision. I am out of the game because bat nahi chal raha hai,” said Rohit Sharma.

“There is no guarantee that the bat will not work after five months, there is no guarantee that the bat will not work after two months. We have seen a lot in cricket, every minute. every second, everyday life changes. So I have this belief in myself that things will change but at the same time you know I have to be realistic as well,” he added.