Indian captain Rohit Sharma is reportedly in line to miss the first Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25, which will begin on November 22 at the Optus Stadium in Perth. There have been speculations suggesting that he and his wife Ritika Sajdeh are expecting their second child.
According to media reports, Rohit has applied for paternity leave. However, he will be among the first batch of Indian players who will fly to Australia on Sunday, November 10, while another group is going to depart on Monday.
Ever since the speculations of Rohit’s potential absence from the first Test broke out, a section of the cricket fraternity has come down hard on the 37-year-old. Vexation was already in the air after India were embarrassingly whitewashed in the three-match Test series against New Zealand at home earlier this month. The five-match Test series against India is very crucial for the Asian giants as they need to win 4-0 or 5-0 to make it to the finals of the World Test Championship (WTC) without relying on any other team.
Rohit’s absence from the first Test will leave a huge void at the top of the order for the Australian fast bowlers to exploit. Also, after the debacle against the Kiwis, the morale in the team must be at a low and the role of the captain would have been all the more important. These factors have worried some fans and they have lambasted the talismanic batter.
However, former Australia captain Aaron Finch has come out to Rohit’s aid, according to journalist Fayed D’Souza. She put out a post on her Instagram handle to inform about Finch’s support for his former Mumbai Indians captain. Interestingly, Ritika commented below the post as she tagged the Aussie and put a salute-face emoji for him.
Rohit Sharma’s Test form a worry for India
Rohit has played 11 Tests this year for India. The experienced campaigner has scored just 588 runs from 21 innings at a dismal average of 29.40. He has registered two half-centuries and as many tons this season.
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Against New Zealand, he could only aggregate 91 runs from six innings at a paltry average of 15.17. India needs their captain to come out all guns blazing in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy as their backs are up against the wall.
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