Champions Trophy Performances Saved them from being Axed

The sterling performances by Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the recently concluded Champions Trophy in Dubai has given a new lease of life to their Test playing careers. The veteran duo, who had been woefully short of confidence and form in the Border Gavaskar Test Series Down Under, have earned the reward of playing in the long and arduous England Test series which gets underway in June.

FIRST DRAFT spoke to a cross section of players and former BCCI officials in an attempt to understand how Rohit, who was rumoured to be relieved of the honour of leading the team after the Australia series where India lost 1-3, has again been asked to captain it in the England series. The BCCI’s decision to back the 37-year-old Mumbaikar for the five Test series in England seems quite intriguing.

One major factor for continuing with Rohit Sharma as a captain is that the BCCI felt that they needed his services more as a captain than a player. Apart from his explosive batting at the top of the order, Rohit has a cool temperament and demeanour, which is in stark contrast to the aggressive outwardly belligerent Virat Kohli. 

 “Let’s not forget that it was under Rohit that India made it to the final of the 2023 World Cup, and emerged champions in the World T20 and the Champions Trophy in Dubai. He is seen as an astute captain able to deliver under extreme pressure. That is the reason why the BCCI retained him as they feel that his services to the team as a captain is going to be very crucial,” said a former BCCI official.

Also, in the current Indian team, Rohit is one of the few players who commands respect from majority of players. Unlike in the case of previous captains like Dhoni and Virat Kohli, when there was factionalism in the team, Rohit is widely accepted as a captain. 

“Majority of youngsters in Team India have a lot of respect and regard for Rohit as he rarely admonishes them and is always there to encourage and prod them. He is a hands-on captain and also a great man-management person who seems to know how to get the best out of each and every player. This wider acceptability was a big factor which worked in his favour,” is how a former BCCI official reacted to the management giving the captaincy to Rohit for the England Test Series.

Another factor is the importance BCCI attaches to the England tour. Over the years, Indian captains, except Rahul Dravid, have failed to win a series in England. In fact, after the Border Gavaskar series, it’s the England series which a tough frontier for Indian cricket.  To put in perspective, MS Dhoni, who has been one of the most successful Indian captains across all the three formats, lost two series in England. Even Virat Kohli, another successful captain, could not manage to win a series in England. 

So, the BCCI realised that they need an experienced and a successful captain with a good track record to spearhead India’s challenge in the England series. There is no doubt that Rohit Sharma’s credentials as a captain are all too well known.  Yet another reason is that BCCI want Rohit the batsman for the England series as well. A peek at the stats during India’s last tour of England in 2021reveals that Rohit Sharma had scored a respectable 368 runs in the four Tests he played in the 5- Test series.

 “He also scored a breathtaking knock of 128 in the Third Test match, which was one of the best knocks by any Indian batsman touring England. The way he handled the dangerous James Anderson won him accolades even from English critics. He is by far India’s best batsman by a mile,” says former cricketer Rajinder Amarnath. He was the third highest scorer on that tour after England captain Joe Root and Johny Bairstow.

 “His average of 52.27 was something which the best Indian players like Tendulkar and Dravid had in their hey days in England. So, for me Rohit the batsman opening in the tough early period with a swinging ball in England becomes a very crucial factor for Team India,” says Amarnath.   

As regards Virat, when he last time toured England in 2021, he was a disaster with the bat. Captaining India put him under a lot of pressure, and he was a shadow of himself. In the five Tests that he played he could only score 249 runs at an average of 27. 25 which is poor by his standards. England’s top bowler James Anderson was all over him, and most times he was dismissed while playing outside the off stump—a weakness which has been dogging Virat for some time now.  

Another factor which will make things difficult for Virat in the coming series is the fact that he is vulnerable to the early swing conditions that are prevalent in England. Unlike in other countries, where the ball does not move much, the overcast conditions in England see the ball move and seam around a lot. The seam movement demands that the batsmen have to bide their time and patience is of the essence. This is where someone like Virat runs into trouble as he is an attacking batsman who goes for his shots early on.

“Virat is not a grafter--- someone who simply play balls without scoring runs. In English conditions, grafters like Sachin and Dravid have very good records since they don’t start attacking early, they gauge the pitch and bounce of the surface, and when only they find their groove, they go after the bowlers, No wonder both Sachin and Dravid have been so successful in England. In Virat’s case, he does not have the patience and the temperament to be a grinder and tends to get out early in England. In fact, it’s in England that Virat has struggled the maximum in his Test career. It’s no surprise that he has scored only 3 Test centuries against England,” says Rajinder Amarnath.

In fact, after his debacle in the Border Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, there were many who felt that his Test career was over.  At 36, with a poor record in England, if he gets selected for the crucial middle order, it has got to do with his exploits in the Champions Trophy where he scored a century and had solid scores in the middle. But the England Test tour is a different ball game altogether.