Border Gavaskar Trophy Archives

Rohit Sharma opens up on pulling out of Sydney Test in BGT

India captain Rohit Sharma has revealed the reason for withdrawing from the Sydney Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.

Following the first Test of the five-match series, Rohit joined the team in the second Test. However, his place came under the spotlight after a string of low scores.

In addition, before the must-win final Test to retain the trophy, it was reported that Rohit Sharma would not be part of the team as he had decided to withdraw from the match.

Following the reports, speculations began making the rounds on social media about the decision and his future as India’s captain in the Test format.

Subsequently, Rohit Sharma missed the Sydney Test, which India lost as Australia won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series 3-1.

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While speaking during a podcast with former Australian captain Michael Clarke, Rohit Sharma mentioned that he didn’t want to remain in the lineup, especially since many of the other players were also struggling.

“In the last Test match in Sydney, I had to be honest with myself. I was not hitting the ball well. And I didn’t want to put myself there only because we had a lot of the other guys who were struggling as well,” he revealed.

“When you add yourself in there, it just becomes a little more… And we wanted Gill to play,” he added.

The top-order batter, however, stated that he and the Team India coach and selectors were not fully in agreement after he spoke with them about his decision.

“I was like, ‘Okay, if I’m not hitting the ball well, it’s right now.’ Things can change ten days later, five days later.”

“I spoke to the coach and the selector, who was there on the tour. They kind of agreed, not agreed. There was an argument around it,” Rohit Sharma stated.

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Nathan McSweeney opens up on ‘chaos’ of facing Jasprit Bumrah

Australia’s young batter Nathan McSweeney has reflected on the immense challenge of facing India’s pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah during the recent Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

McSweeney, who was included in Australia’s Test squad and tasked with opening the innings alongside Usman Khawaja following David Warner’s retirement, struggled to make an impact in the series.

He managed just 72 runs in six innings at an average of 14.40, finding himself at the receiving end of Bumrah’s relentless bowling. The Indian pacer dismissed him four times in five innings, leading to McSweeney being dropped for the final two matches.

Speaking to an Australian media outlet, the right-hander admitted that facing Bumrah was far more difficult than he had anticipated.

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“Yeah, tough work is probably an understatement. He [Jasprit Bumrah] is an incredible bowler. I was probably naïve going into it, never faced him before and (thinking) he’ll be fine,” Nathan McSweeney said.

“But he’s an incredible bowler with great skill and a relentless ability to pitch the ball exactly where you don’t want as a batter.”

Despite his struggles, the 25-year-old found some solace in the fact that he wasn’t alone in his battle against Bumrah, who troubled even the most experienced Australian batters.

“It was a very tough challenge, but it also gave me hope that no one had great success against him. Everyone was trying to tackle him at the same time, and no one was playing him with ease, which gave me a little bit of confidence,” he added.

It is worth noting that Australia bounced back from a 1-0 deficit to clinch the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 3-1, securing a historic comeback victory after losing the opening Test.

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India legend slams Virat Kohli for his on-field behavior against Australia

Legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has criticised India’s star batter Virat Kohli for shoulder-bumping young Australian batter Sam Konstas and for his overall on-field behaviour during the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Kohli made headlines during the tour of Australia, not for his batting prowess, but for his behaviour on the field. He showed glimpses of his on-field aggression during the first three matches of the series, but he completely lost his cool in the fourth Test.

Sam Konstas took the world by storm on his debut as he attacked an in-form Jasprit Bumrah early in his innings on the opening day of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne in front of a sold-out crowd.

Konstas’ charge against India’s best bowler frustrated the fielding team. However, Kohli failed to control his emotions and bumped the batter’s shoulder, leading to an exchange between them.

“What Kohli did with the shoulder bump is simply not cricket,” Sunil Gavaskar wrote in his column in The Sydney Morning Herald. “Indians are not shy to retaliate if provoked, but here the provocation was simply not there.”

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“The one thing that players learn with experience is that it’s futile to try and get back at the crowds, who have come to have a good time, so booing players is never personal but just a way to entertain themselves.”

Throughout the series, the vocal home crowd directed loud boos at Virat Kohli for his behaviour.

The star did not back down either as he provoked the Sydney crowd during the fifth Test by mimicking the infamous sandpaper scandal that had marred Australia’s tour of South Africa in 2018.

“To react to that doesn’t do the player any good, and in fact, does more harm. Kohli must understand that whatever he does to react to the crowd actually puts more pressure on his teammates, who also then become targets of the spectators,” Gavaskar added.

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Rohit Sharma opens up on rumours of Test retirement

India captain Rohit Sharma refuted the rumours of his retirement on Saturday while revealing that he stood down from the ongoing fifth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia due to his below-par form.

The acclaimed opener has had a poor series, with critics suggesting his omission from the Test — with the visitors down 2-1 going into the match at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) — was the end of his red-ball career.

But the 37-year-old has hit back, telling Indian broadcaster Star Sports at the SCG: “I’m not going anywhere.”

“This decision is not a retirement decision nor am I going to step aside from the game,” Rohit Sharma added.

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Rohit Sharma missed the first Test in Perth for the birth of his second child and has not looked fully engaged since, failing to get past 10 runs in any of his five innings.

Rohit said that he had told the coach and selectors that he was “not in form” and that for the critical final Test, the team needed “a player in form”.

His recent lacklustre performances come on the back of a similarly poor return during India’s 3-0 home series loss to New Zealand during October-November.

Stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah insisted at the coin toss on Friday that Rohit had “opted to rest” for the good of the team rather than being forced out.

READ: Jasprit Bumrah leaves Sydney Test with possible injury

Jasprit Bumrah leaves Sydney Test with possible injury

SYDNEY: India pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah left the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) midway through the second session on day two of the final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia here on Saturday.

Bumrah, who was leading the Indian team in the fifth Test after Rohit Sharma was rested, was possibly headed for hospital scans.

He left the field shortly before lunch but reappeared after the break and bowled one over. But his speed was clearly down and he went off again.

TV pictures showed him in his training kit with medical staff, getting in a car and driving out of the ground. Commentators suggested he was going for scans for an unknown injury.

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After the day’s play, Prasidh Krishna revealed that Bumrah was suffering from back spasms.

“Yes, he had a back spasm. He had gone for scans,” Prasidh said. “The medical team is monitoring him. So we will know whenever the medical team gets back to us,” he said when asked if Bumrah would bowl in the final innings of the series.

The visitors need to win the match to retain the Border-Gavaskar trophy, with Bumrah their key strike bowler. Jasprit Bumrah has taken 2-33 so far in Australia’s first innings with the match finely poised.

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Ravi Shastri expects Rohit Sharma to ‘pull plug’ on Test career

Former India coach Ravi Shastri said on Friday that he expected skipper Rohit Sharma to “pull the plug” on his red-ball career after being left out of the fifth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia in Sydney.

The 37-year-old opener has had a poor series and the writing was on the wall when he failed to show up for India’s pre-match press conference.

Coach Gautam Gambhir instead fronted the media on Thursday and declined to throw his support behind him.

Stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah insisted at the coin toss Friday that Rohit had “opted to rest” for the good of the team rather than being forced out.

Ravi Shastri believes Rohit jumped rather than was pushed but suspects it is the end of his 67-Test career.

“It still is a brave call for a captain to own up and say, ‘I’m prepared to take the bench in this game,'” Shastri said while commentating on Fox Sports.

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“If there was a home season coming up he might’ve thought of carrying on, but I think he might just pull the plug at the end of this Test.

“It’s not that India don’t have youngsters. There are very, very good players in the wings and it’s time to build.

“Tough decisions, but there is a time for everything.”

Rohit Sharma quit T20I cricket last year after lifting the World Cup, but is yet to call time on his ODI career. He missed the first Test in Perth for the birth of his second child and has not looked fully engaged since, failing to get past 10 runs in any of his five innings.

His recent form comes on the back of a similarly poor return during India’s 3-0 home series loss to New Zealand during October-November.

“Our captain has shown his leadership, he’s opted to rest in this game,” Bumrah said at the toss. “So that shows there’s a lot of unity in our team, there’s no selfishness, whatever is in the team’s best interest, we are looking to do that.”

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Mitchell Marsh dropped as Australia unveil Playing XI for fifth Test against India

Out-of-form all-rounder Mitchell Marsh was dropped on Thursday as Australia announced their Playing XI for the series-deciding fifth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India in Sydney with Beau Webster to make his debut.

Fast bowler Mitchell Starc retained his place for Friday’s match despite carrying a rib niggle and will line up in the attack alongside Pat Cummins, Scott Boland and Nathan Lyon.

“Mitchy [Mitchell Marsh] obviously hasn’t quite got the runs or wickets he would have liked this series and felt like it was time for a freshen-up,” said skipper Cummins. “Beau’s been with the squad and been great.”

“It’s a shame for Mitchy because we know how much he brings to the team, but we feel like now is a good time for Beau to get a chance.”

Marsh’s position had been under intense scrutiny after a poor series with bat and ball and his axing could potentially herald the end of the 33-year-old’s Test career.

After making his debut in 2014, he struggled to cement his place in the team and with the emergence of Cameron Green had been on the red-ball sidelines in recent years.

He returned to the Test side when Green was ruled out of the series following surgery on his spine.

Cummins said Marsh, who remains a key figure for Australia in the white-ball game, took the news well.

“He was totally understanding. I think his words were, ‘I’m not necessarily blindsided.’

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“He knows he hasn’t scored the runs or (taken) wickets he would have liked so that makes you vulnerable.”

Tasmanian Webster, 31, has toiled for years in Sheffield Shield cricket and will be Australia’s third debutant in the series.

Teenage opener Sam Konstas was called up for the fourth Test in Melbourne, in place of Nathan McSweeney who had made his debut in the first Test in Perth but had a poor run and was dumped after the third in Brisbane.

Konstas announced himself with a quickfire 60, audaciously ramping India’s premier fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah for a six.

Webster can bowl pace and off-spin and was considered a better option in case left-armer quick Starc has any issues. Starc bowled 41 overs in Melbourne — which Australia won by 184 runs on day five — but clearly struggled in the latter stages.

But despite this Cummins said: “He was never going to miss this one.”

Australia are 2-1 up in the series and will regain the Border-Gavaskar trophy for the first time since 2014-15 if they win or draw the Test which begins on Friday.

Victory would also guarantee them a place in the June World Test Championship final at Lord’s against South Africa.

Australia Playing XI for final Test against India: Sam Konstas, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Beau Webster, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland

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Ravi Shastri suggests bold move to ensure Test cricket’s survival

Former India coach Ravi Shastri on Wednesday advocated for a two-tier structure in Test cricket with relegation and promotion to ensure the survival of the red-ball game.

His comments follow the blockbuster fourth Test between India and Australia that drew a record 373,691 spectators to the Melbourne Cricket Ground over five enthralling days.

That beat the previous record of 350,534 at the same ground during the 1936-37 Ashes series against England, when Donald Bradman ruled the sport and Tests were played over six days.

Shastri, now a commentator, said he could not remember “a bigger advertisement for Test cricket” and said it proved the five-day game continued to hold its own in the face of ever-increasing T20 franchise cricket.

But the 62-year-old said it also reinforced his view that for Test cricket to survive, the biggest teams needed to be playing each other more often.

“To break crowd records that have stood for nearly a century… is testimony to the fact that when the best teams play, the toughest and best format of the game is still alive and thriving,” he said in a column for The Australian newspaper.

“It was also a sound reminder to the ICC (International Cricket Council) that the best should play the best for Test cricket to survive. I will say that there’s too much of a clutter otherwise.

“This match further emphasises why we need a two-tier system with the top 6-8 teams and then include promotion and demotion. You will not get these kinds of crowds if you don’t have two proper teams playing.”

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The ICC has been contemplating a two-tier system for years to keep the format competitive but the plans have never got off the ground.

A proposal for a de facto premier league featuring the top seven sides was on the agenda of the world governing body in 2016. It was scrapped after the powerful Indian board led a backlash.

While India stand to gain from playing more matches against teams such as England and Australia, the BCCI said at the time the cost to smaller cricketing nations was too great.

Ravi Shastri also said the Melbourne game proved that Tests should remain five days, amid chatter that they should be reduced to four to help streamline schedules.

“The theatre in the end on (day five) Monday was further proof of why we need five days for a classic Test match,” he said.

“However, if you don’t create a two-tier system, you’ll continue to have unmatched teams up against each other and then it’s very unlikely they’ll be able to take a game into the fifth day.

“Then there’ll always be talk of four-day Tests.”

Australia won the Test by 184 runs deep into day five and lead the series 2-1 heading into the final clash in Sydney this week.

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Australia head coach optimistic for Mitchell Starc’s fitness for final India Test

Australia coach Andrew McDonald on Tuesday said he was optimistic that pace spearhead Mitchell Starc will be fit for the decisive fifth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India.

The hosts pulled off a stunning 184-run win deep into day five of the fourth Test in Melbourne and there is a quick turnaround before the match in Sydney from Friday.

Australia are 2-1 up in the series and will regain the Border-Gavaskar trophy for the first time since 2014-15 if they win or draw the New Year’s Test against India.

Victory would also guarantee them a place in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s against South Africa.

Mitchell Starc bowled 41 overs in Melbourne but clearly struggled in the latter stages, reportedly with sore ribs.

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McDonald said selectors would wait to see how he is before making any calls.

“We’ll see how the bodies are. Clearly, Starcy’s carrying something of some description. We’ll assess that,” he said. “But other than that it looks as though we got through.”

“But short turnaround, recovery is important and we’ll assess what the team looks like in Sydney based upon the surface, as we always do.”

Andrew McDonald said though it was a good indicator that Mitchell Starc kept bowling in Melbourne.

“It didn’t stop him. Clearly, there was a little bit of discomfort early on in spells but once he got warm, it seemed as though he was pretty free. Ball speeds are good.”

Jhye Richardson and Sean Abbott are the other fast bowlers in the squad, with skipper Pat Cummins and Scott Boland certain to play again.

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Former pacer questions Virat Kohli’s place in Indian team

Former Indian pacer Irfan Pathan has questioned the position of star batter Virat Kohli in the national cricket team due to his prolonged struggle in red-ball cricket.

Kohli has faced criticism recently due to his disappointing performances in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia. While he did score a century in the first Test, which India won in Perth, he has since posted a series of low scores: 7, 11, 3, 36, and 5.

Irfan Pathan, during a discussion on Star Sports after India’s defeat in the fourth Test, criticised Kohli for his performances in red-ball cricket in the last five years.

“It’s been five years. You are such a big player, and your average in the last five years has been close to 28,” said Pathan. “Does Indian cricket deserve this? Absolutely not. They deserve better than this.”

“He has an average of 21 since October 2023. The Indian team doesn’t deserve that. Even a young player will give you an average of 21.

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“You expect more than this from Virat Kohli. If your career average is close to 50, these are numbers to be ashamed of.”

Pathan elaborated on the concerning trend of Kohli’s dismissals in the ongoing series, drawing attention to how often the batter has succumbed to balls pitched outside the off-stump.

“If you look at his dismissals, all the balls were outside the stumps. If you don’t touch them, the balls will go to the wicket-keeper, and the bowler will definitely try something else,” he stated.

“Good players increase the gap between two similar mistakes. Virat is making similar mistakes repeatedly. Australia are not even moving from Plan A to Plan B. He is getting out to Plan A itself.”

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