Big setback for Rohit Sharma! Opening & No.5 spot denied, new batting position assigned for BGT

Team India skipper Rohit Sharma joined the Test team during the first match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 against Australia. However, Rohit Sharma's poor performance in the warm-up game against Australia’s Prime Minister’s XI has raised concerns for the visitors ahead of the second Test.

Sharma did not travel with the Indian team to Perth and stayed back in Mumbai for the birth of his second child. He joined the team midway through the opening Test and played his first match in the warm-up against Australia's Prime Minister’s XI. Rohit batted at No. 4 in the recent warm-up match.

The right-handed batter scored just three runs off 11 balls in the pink-ball practice game at the Manuka Oval, Canberra, on Sunday, December 1. He got off the mark on his eighth delivery after a nervous start. Sharma nicked an outside off-stump delivery, and the first slip completed the simple catch.

Rohit Sharma to Lead India in Remaining Four Test Matches in Australia

The 37-year-old will captain the Indian team in the remainder of the five-match series in Australia. Rohit last played a Test during the home Test series against New Zealand, where the team suffered a whitewash. KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal opened the innings in Rohit's absence during the Perth Test.

KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal added a record-breaking 201-run partnership in the second innings in Perth. The pair also shared a 75-run stand in the warm-up match. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma took on a middle-order role in the warm-up game, despite not batting outside the top order since 2018-19.

Rohit Sharma Should Come in at No. 6 - Devang Gandhi

Former national selector Devang Gandhi advised Rohit Sharma to bat in the middle order for the Adelaide Test. Gandhi said that Rohit should bat at No. 6, as Rishabh Pant has been performing well at No. 5. Gandhi also added that it would not be difficult for Rohit to adjust to the middle order.

"In fact, I feel Rohit should come in at No. 6, because Rishabh Pant, too, has shaped up very well at 5…The left-right combo, too, can be maintained that way," Gandhi told the Times of India.

"It becomes difficult if a middle-order batter tries to become an opener in the latter stages of his career. But it will not be difficult for an opener to go in the middle-order, especially for Rohit, who started as a No. 6 batter for India," he added.

Second Test Match to Commence on Friday, December 6

Rohit last batted at No. 6 during India's 2018/19 tour of Australia, where he scored 37, 1, 63*, and 5 in two matches in Melbourne and Adelaide. This series was India's maiden Test series win in Australia under the captaincy of Virat Kohli.

It may be better for KL Rahul to continue as an opener, given Rohit's current form. India may prefer to avoid experimenting with this at such a crucial stage of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The second Test match will be played at the Adelaide Oval, starting on Friday, December 6.

Also read: Australia PM Anthony Albanese reveals why he took Virat Kohli's autograph and ignored Rohit Sharma