CHENNAI: In the middle of February last year, India captain Rohit Sharma reached a point where he had never been before as a Test opener. For the first time since taking up the role, Rohit had come closest to that magical figure — Test average of 50.
He started his Test career with a bang, but only a year later, it had gone downhill. From averaging 56.87 in early 2014 as a middle-order batter, his number had gone down to 39.62 just before he was asked to open in the longest format in 2019. Since then, he has been on an upward curve. And his hundred against Australia in Nagpur last year had taken his Test average to 47.2.
At that stage, Rohit was the all-format captain leading India to the World Test Championship final. He had been one of the best Test openers for about three years. From the time he started opening till the end of 2022, no opener, who had more than 1000 runs, had a better average than he did (55.42). He was competing with the likes of Usman Khawaja, David Warner and Abdullah Shafique. During this time, India had won a Test series in Australia, came close to winning one in England and had lost just one match at home.
India went on to win the series against Australia at home and qualify for the WTC final, but Rohit as an opener hasn’t been the same since. Since that hundred in Nagpur against Australia, he averages 32.8 in 31 innings with three hundreds and four fifties — one hundred and two fifties came against a depleted West Indies attack. To put it into context, his current opening partner Yashasvi Jaiswal averages close to 60 in the period (59.65).
It is not just about the averages and arbitrary numbers. In this time, India have lost four Tests at home — two to New Zealand, one each against Australia and England. The results, although not necessarily attributed to Rohit’s performance, his sub-par performance have affected India massively at the top. Now, it might not necessarily be a slump, but Rohit has become more inconsistent than he used to be in the format. He has crossed the 40-run mark only eight times in 31 innings with the occasional fifty and hundred to show.
