Indian cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar feared that age is catching up with the Indian skipper after his lazy dismissal in the ongoing Boxing Day Test against Australia on Friday and raised concerns over Rohit Sharma's diminishing reflexes.
Gavaskar says that flaws in the 37-year-old's footwork have become more apparent during his struggles in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Rohit's decision to return to the opening slot in the fourth Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which he shared with Yashasvi Jaiswal and sent KL Rahul down to No. 3, did not pay off.
Facing just 12 deliveries, Rohit scored only three runs before being dismissed by his Australian counterpart Pat Cummins in India's first innings at Melbourne Cricket Ground. Trying a half-pull shot to a short-of-length delivery outside off, Rohit missed the stroke, hitting a top-edge to Scott Boland at mid-on. The shot, Gavaskar described it as an uncharacteristic lapse, underlined the troubles Rohit has faced recently against Cummins.
"That's a shot he normally plays. The half-pull off the front foot. I think he probably got in two minds whether to go for the proper pull shot or not and then ended up just trying to tap it like catching practice. But that's what happens when you have a gap, when you're 36, 37 years old and you have a long gap between playing cricket," Gavaskar said on Star Sports on Rohit's dismissal.
Cummins has now bowled Rohit seven times in Test cricket and, with that, established himself as a nemesis. Over their encounters, the Australian skipper has conceded only 127 runs against Rohit across 199 deliveries - a stark statistic that underlines the Indian captain's inability to dominate the Aussie quick.
"That is the reason why you're seeing that there is probably not the same sort of footwork as you would expect, because your body is such as you get older. It reacts just a little bit slower. You know, the mind is there. Everything the mind tells you, but the body just doesn't do that. So, if you're being continuous at the age of 37, regularly, no problem. Because you know your bat-speed, everything. The moment you have a break, you must be very, very careful, very, very mindful," he added.
Early on, the loss of Rohit short-circuited India's struggles on a pitch that had till now been a batting heaven for Australia. KL Rahul made no difference, got caught off Cummins at 24.
Jaiswal, meanwhile, gave the impression that India was in for a rescue with his fluent 82 off 118 balls that had 11 boundaries and a maximum.
With Kohli, he helped India stabilize, putting together a 102-run stand for the third wicket. A calamitous mix-up between the two ended Jaiswal's innings as the opener was run out while Kohli hesitated to respond to a risky single.
Kohli, who had started his innings with intent, could not build on the platform he built alongside Jaiswal. Once again, he lost his wicket to the habit of edging the deliveries outside the off stump. While trying to drive on a wide delivery from Scott Boland, Kohli nicked it to Alex Carey behind the stumps, getting out for 36.
Kohli’s dismissal, coming just seven balls after Jaiswal’s run-out, exposed India’s middle order to Australia’s relentless attack. Nightwatchman Akash Deep failed to stem the tide, falling for a duck to Boland, who ended the day with impressive figures of 2 for 24.
India were 164/5 at stumps on Day 2, still 310 runs behind Australia's massive first-innings total of 474. Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja are unbeaten at the crease for six and four respectively.
Read also| 4th Test: Ponting Says ‘You Have to Be Switched On’ After Rohit’s Dismissal
Read also| 4th Test: Australia in Control After Smith’s 140 and India’s Batting Collapse
