IPL 2022: Matthew Hayden And Sunil Gavaskar Discuss The Reasons Of Rohit Sharma's Poor Form

Updated - 18 May 2022, 03:07 PM

Rohit Sharma. Photo-IPL
Rohit Sharma. Photo-IPL

Rohit Sharma’s difficult phase was explored in depth by Matthew Hayden and Sunil Gavaskar. While the latter claimed Sharma’s poor shot selection was to reason for his low scores, Hayden disagreed.

Mumbai Indian skipper Rohit is having a poor Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 season. He has 266 points in 13 games, with an average of 20.46.

Sunil Gavaskar Matthew Hayden
Sunil Gavaskar and Matthew Hayden. Image: Twitter

The Indian cricket team captain’s performance will be heavily scrutinized in the coming days as the T20 World Cup approaches in five months.

Gavaskar explained why Rohit Sharma’s form has been so inconsistent: “Picking a shot That’s one of the causes he’s having such a good start, looks like he’s in no trouble, gets to 30-40, and then his shot selection fails him.”

“I understand it’s a reflex. You play the shot after seeing the ball being delivered.

“However, if you decide ahead of time that this is the shot you’ll take and the ball does not appear where you expect it, you may find yourself in trouble. The ball is hitting the center of the bat, so it’s simply a matter of shot selection,” added the former India captain.

‘The key concern of Rohit Sharma’s batting was shot selection’: Gavaskar

While the latter claimed Sharma’s poor shot selection was to reason for his low scores, Hayden disagreed.

Hayden, on the other hand, suggested a different explanation.

“Mental exhaustion, I believe. It comes down to Sunny’s point when you’re psychologically exhausted. ‘Right, what’s my shot selection?’ is where you begin. When you’re psychologically exhausted, I believe you want to shake things up a little bit.

“You want to make things easy, which leads to dismissals. Then there are compounding consequences because poor results lead to even worse outcomes,” Hayden stated during the Star Sports pre-match show.

Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma. (Photo: IPL)

“What kind of exhaustion are we speaking about?” Gavaskar then inquired of the former Australian cricketer.

“When you’re getting constant action, and these people are always playing, it’s a good thing. The reality is that the situation is extremely unusual. We finished our game and went to a friend’s house to relax, unwind, and enjoy each other’s company.

Rohit Sharma (Image Credits: Twitter)
Rohit Sharma (Image Credits: Twitter)

“What happens when you’re immersed in a bubble environment for two years? It closes in on you. Because such excellence is demanded, there are high expectations. I sympathize with them,” Hayden elaborated on his idea.

SunRisers upset Mumbai Indians by three runs on the night, surviving a scare from Tim David, who single-handedly hauled Mumbai back into the match with an incredible 46-off 18-balls knock. This harmed SRH’s chances of winning by a large margin, lowering their table NRR.

Also Read: IPL 2022: MS Dhoni’s Leadership Wouldn’t Have Made Much Of A Difference: Harbhajan Singh

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IPL 2022 Matthew Hayden Mumbai Indians (MI) Rohit Sharma Sunil Gavaskar