Melbourne: India’s head coach, Gautam Gambhir, remained tight-lipped when questioned directly about skipper Rohit Sharma’s participation in the upcoming Sydney Test match against Australia.
During a practice session, Rohit was seen engaging in a casual football kickaround with teammates and working on his batting in the nets. However, when asked about Rohit’s availability for the game, Gambhir stated, “The squad has not yet finalized the starting lineup. We will assess the pitch conditions tomorrow before making a decision.”
A Season of Unconventional Choices
India has taken several surprising selection decisions throughout the series. In Perth, Washington Sundar was picked as the lone spinner, but he was replaced by Ravichandran Ashwin and later Ravindra Jadeja in Brisbane. Debutant fast bowler Harshit Rana, who struggled during the Pink Ball Test in Adelaide, was dropped after his stint in Perth.
In Melbourne, further changes saw Shubman Gill benched as India fielded three all-rounders—Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, and Nitish Reddy. Skipper Rohit Sharma opened the batting solo under challenging circumstances, with KL Rahul moving to No. 3.
India’s adaptive strategies have garnered attention, with fans and critics eager to see how the team finalizes its lineup for Sydney.
