Former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar has opened up on the uncertainty over captain Rohit Sharma’s availability for the upcoming Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. He stated that the selectors should name a new captain for the entire series. However, reports said that the 3veteran will miss the first match due to personal reasons. Gavaskar also said that if Rohit is unavailable for two-thirds of the games, he should join the team later only as a player and not as a captain.
In a discussion with Sports Tak, Gavaskar said: “It is important for the captain to play the first Test. If he gets injured then it is a different matter. In such a situation, if your leader is not available in the first match, then appointing a deputy leader, the pressure that builds on him is a different kind of pressure. It will not be easy for him to take the responsibility of captaincy again.”
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“We have been reading that Rohit Sharma will not play in the first Test, perhaps he will not play in the second as well. If this is the case then I say that right now the Indian selection committee should say that you have to rest, rest, if there are personal reasons then look at them. But if you are missing two-thirds of the matches then you should go for this tour only as a player. We will make the vice-captain the captain of this tour. Because there should be clarity. It is the responsibility of the captain because when we lost 3-0 here, it is important to have a captain. Absolutely necessary,” he continued.
“Indian cricket is the most important. I would say that if we had won the New Zealand series 3-0, it would have been a different matter. Because we have lost this series 3-0, there is a need for a captain. The captain has to unite the team. If there is no captain in the beginning, it is better to make someone else the captain” Gavaskar again added.
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However, during the press conference on November 3, following the series against New Zealand, Rohit Sharma said that he might miss the first match of the BGT 2024-25.
He said: “Right now, I am not too sure whether I’ll be going, but let’s see. Fingers crossed.”
