No discussion with Ajit Agarkar about retirement, Rohit Sharma to continue as India captain in Sydney Test: Report

Rohit Sharma is under a truckload of pressure. His batting form is at an all-time low, and his captaincy looks ineffective and benign whenever a big partnership is brewing. With a match - India's last chance to hold on to the Border-Gavaskar Trophy by registering a win in Sydney - to go in the five-Test series, Rohit, for the first time in his career, is facing the dreaded glare of retirement and it is stronger than ever before. There have been multiple reports suggesting a mid-series retirement like former captain MS Dhoni in 2014-15. There have been murmurs about a meeting between chief selector Ajit Agarkar and Rohit regarding the same, but the reality is slightly different. India's skipper Rohit Sharma with BCCI Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar during a practice session(Surjeet Yadav)

According to a Cricbuzz report, the selectors are not ready to decide on Rohit's future in the middle of the series. If needed, Agarkar will talk to Rohit after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy is completed.

"The situation with Rohit is the proverbial elephant in the room. It is not that the authorities are oblivious to the writing on the wall, but they seem keen to avoid rocking the boat in the middle of an important away series. Despite reports suggesting that Ajit Agarkar has had a conversation with the Indian captain, it is understood that any such discussions will take place only after the series," the report stated.

What this also means is that Rohit is all but confirmed to lead India in the New Year's Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground, starting January 3 (Friday). "Unless Rohit makes the unlikely decision to step aside voluntarily from the SCG XI, he is expected to lead the team in the fifth and final Test, set to begin in a few days," the report added.

Why Rohit Sharma is under pressure

Rohit was unavailable for the first Test in Perth due to the birth of his second child. Jasprit Bumrah led in his absence, and incidentally, that was the only Test of the series India won. Former Australia cricketers like Mark Waugh have not made any attempts to hide the fact that Bumrah should replace Rohit as India's captain. Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has gone on to state that Rohit has held on to his place in the side only because he is the captain.

But how did things reach this stage? In the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under, Rohit has managed just 31 runs in five innings. Barring the second innings in Melbourne, where he faced 40 balls, Rohit has not at all looked comfortable in any one of his innings. Neither did moving down to No.6 nor climbing back at the top work. The way he got out in the day-night Test in Adelaide and in the third Test in Brisbane suggested that he was way past his prime.

And it's not like the Australia series is Rohit's first bad outing in recent times. This is after a disappointing 91 runs in six innings during the previous home series against New Zealand and a mere 42 runs in the home series against Bangladesh. In all, he has managed just 164 runs across 15 innings, averaging less than 11.

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