India faced a tough time in Australia during the recent Border-Gavaskar Trophy, losing the series 1-3. While Jasprit Bumrah was praised as the Man of the Series and Nitish Kumar Reddy showed some flashes of brilliance, India’s batting lineup faced heavy criticism. Many former players pointed fingers at the senior players, especially Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, for not performing well.
Rohit was missing from the first Test in Perth because he was on paternity leave, and Bumrah stepped in as captain. However, upon Rohit’s return, things didn’t improve, leading to criticism from Gautam Gambhir and others. Rohit also chose not to play in the final Test due to his poor form, which sparked rumors about his tense relationship with head coach Gambhir.
Robin Uthappa, a former teammate of Rohit, spoke about this situation. When asked if Gambhir’s coaching style was like that of Greg Chappell—who had a famous dispute with Sourav Ganguly—Uthappa defended Gambhir. He said, “Gautam is very straightforward. He tells you directly what he thinks, and I prefer that sort of honesty.”
Uthappa noted that managing different players can be challenging for Gambhir, especially since he has to work with various captains like Rohit and Hardik Pandya. While Gambhir supports Rohit, building their chemistry may take time.
Rohit, now 37 years old, struggled with just 31 runs over three Tests in Australia. He explained his absence from the final Test was due to his own decision because of his form.
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