As Rohit Sharma Races Against Time To Prove Fitness For Australia Tests, Rumoured Replacement Shreyas Iyer Spotted With Coach Ravi Shastri in Nets
Rohit Sharma must travel to Australia soon if he intends to take part in the series considering the mandatory 14-day quarantine. And with the 33-year-old still India, his rumoured replacement for the Test format, Shreyas Iyer, was spotted with coach Ravi Shastri during the recent practice sessions.
There are serious doubts over Rohit Sharma’s participation in the upcoming tour of Australia as the Indian cricketer races against time to prove his fitness. The 33-year-old batsman after being initially left out was later added to the squad for the Test series but is yet to travel to Australia as he continues his recovery from a hamstring injury suffered during IPL at the National Cricket Academy (NCA). Rohit Sharma's Absence Will Be Tremendous Void in White Ball, Ditto for Virat Kohli in Tests, Says Steve Smith.
Rohit Sharma missed a few games for Mumbai Indians during the recently concluded Indian Premier League 2020 but returned ahead of the playoffs, to guide the franchise to a record fifth title. However, despite playing in the competition, Rohit Sharma is yet to receive clearance from the NCA to make the trip to Australia for the Test series. Australia Jumps Past India to Claim the Top Spot on the ICC World Test Championship.
While taking to Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Indian coach Ravi Shastri said that it will be difficult for Rohit Sharma to play in Tests if he doesn't arrive in the next few days. 'If you need to play in the Test series or any red-ball cricket, you've got to be on the flight in the next three or four days. If you aren't, then it's going to be tough.' he said.
Rohit Sharma must travel to Australia soon if he intends to take part in the series considering the mandatory 14-day quarantine. And with the 33-year-old still India, his rumoured replacement for the Test format, Shreyas Iyer, was spotted with coach Ravi Shastri during the recent practice sessions.
Shreyas Iyer is being tipped to replace Rohit Sharma if the batsman is unable to play, in the longest format of the game for the Australia tour. ‘There won’t be any fresh player coming in after Rohit and Ishant’s arrival. If the need arises, Shreyas could be asked to stay back’ a BCCI source was quoted as saying by TOI.
India will already be without skipper Virat Kohli for the last three Tests of the series as the 32-year-old will be returning back to India to attend the birth of his first child and if Rohit Sharma is also unable to make it in time, Team India will have to do without two of their senior-most players. The Test series is scheduled to start on December 17, 2020.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 24, 2020 01:06 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).