Is Rohit Sharma losing trust in his defense? Manjrekar weighs in
Xtra Time Web Desk: Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has drawn attention to a critical flaw in Rohit Sharma’s technique as the Indian captain continues to struggle in the ongoing Test season. Rohit has faced sharp criticism for his aggressive approach, which has led to several dismissals while attempting big shots. This has been particularly evident during India’s recent 0-3 whitewash against New Zealand at home.
Analyzing Rohit's form, Manjrekar avoided labeling the opener’s approach as reckless but indicated that Rohit may no longer have confidence in his defensive game. He believes this is pushing the Indian captain to counter-attack in situations where a more measured approach might be needed.
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“I will never say that he is reckless because he is finding his own way to ensure that he gets runs, to get the team to win. He clearly doesn't trust his defence anymore, you could see that, there was a lbw appeal and that must have just made him feel unsettled even more. So the next thing that he looks to do is counter-attack...who knows, a couple of shots here and there and he would have maybe replicated that Bangladesh run chase,” Manjrekar shared on ESPNCricinfo.
Manjrekar also pointed out that Rohit’s failure stems from frequent mis-hits during his attempts at big shots. This technical issue has compounded his poor run of form.
“The shot that he played to get out was where he was trying to hit the ball into the stands rather than just make the connection. He is missing a few of his big hits... so he is mis-hitting a lot of his attacking shots and he is not trusting his defence enough. So that is a real problem for Rohit Sharma currently,” Manjrekar added.
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In the current home Test season, Rohit has managed just 133 runs from ten innings, averaging a mere 13.30, with only one half-century to his name. His form remains a growing concern ahead of India’s upcoming five-match Test series in Australia.