Former Indian batter Hemang Badani wants the team’s coaches to provide aid to struggling Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the ongoing Test series against Australia. Badani noted that both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are big players and often the think tank doesn’t give them many inputs as far as their technical game is concerned, thinking they don’t need much help as they have all the experience under their belt.
However, Badani wants head coach Gautam Gambhir and assistant coaches Ryan ten Doeschate and Abhishek Nayar to have a strong discussion with the veteran duo Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
Rohit Sharma’s current form in BGT 2024-25 and previous performances
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli scored 91 and 93 runs respectively in the three Test matches against New Zealand. Subsequently, Kohli scored an unbeaten 100 in the second innings at Perth against Australia but he returned with scores of 7 and 11 in the second pink-ball Test at Adelaide. Rohit Sharma, who was making a comeback after missing the opening Test due to personal reasons, registered scores of 3 and 6 in the second Test.
Rohit Sharma is back in the Indian squad and featured in the second Test after missing the first one due to family reasons. He also captained the side as the team lost the Adelaide Test by 10 wickets. But a slump in his form does not refuse to cede as scored just three and six runs respectively after keeping KL Rahul as an opener as he batted at the number six position.
Virat Kohli who was going through the same phase with the bat as Rohit, made a comeback in the first Test in Perth with a scintillating century. But the hangover still remains evident as he came up with scores of seven and 11 respectively in Adelaide.
Expectations were high from Kohli after his century in Perth, and the fact that Adelaide was one of his happy hunting grounds. However, he was dismissed by Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland with the pink ball in the first and the second innings respectively while attempting to play a delivery outside the off stump.
Rohit Sharma, batting in the middle order for the first time since 2018, also endured a forgettable return. He had failed to impress in the warm-up contest against the Prime Minister’s XI during the build-up to the second Test. He was trapped lbw by Boland in the first innings, and castled by Pat Cummins the second time around.
After India’s 10-wicket loss in Adelaide, Former India cricketer, Hemang Badani has urged the coaching staff to have a word with India’s batting stalwarts.
Hemang Badani calls for talks over Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli’s run draught ahead of 3rd test
Former Team India batter Hemang Badani feels the coaching staff should not take Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s years of excellence for granted and remain idle while the pair stagger through a rough patch. The iconic batting duo has had a rough time in red-ball cricket since the commencement of the home season in September.
Kohli had some breathing space following his ton in the first Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test in Perth, but the mounting pressure is back after twin failures in the pink-ball Test at the Adelaide Oval. Similar fortunes have befallen Rohit Sharma, who recorded just one fifty in the entire home season and began the tour of Australia on a forgettable note.
A lot has been said about their flaws in technique and how the opposition bowlers have been exploiting it. Their methods of dismissal are now alarming as well, which could lead to an intervention by the coaching staff.
Hemang Badani said that coaches often leave Rohit and Virat to work on their game themselves since they are such accomplished players, but he feels that now is not the time for such an approach.
“Sometimes what happens is, at the highest level – I’ll take names, a Rohit Sharma or a Virat Kohli – sometimes as a coach you think ‘Oh he’s Virat Kohli, he’s Rohit Sharma, they know what to do’ and you’ll let it be.
Are you going to let it be or as the coaching staff or the batting coach are you going to go and tell them ‘Sir, you’ve played cricket for many years. But there is a slight problem (with your game). What solution can we bring for this problem? Do you have that solution or what are you thinking? Or do you want me to help you?” Hemang Badani said on Star Sports Tamil.
The newly-appointed Delhi Capitals (DC) head coach further explained how such tough conversations need to be held during a time of such crisis.
“Are you going to have those tough conversations or not? Sometimes you think they are Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, they know what to do, let them be. But if you ask me, no matter who the player is, if you are thinking about the team, go speak to them. It’s not wrong. After that whether they (the players) take it or not is their point of view. But as a coach you definitely have to go speak to them,” Badani added
The onus is now on the coaching trio of Gautam Gambhir, Abhishek Nayar, and Ryan ten Doeschate to find a solution and help the batting pair find their groove and make an impact in the remainder of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
For the unversed, with the Adelaide win, Australia have announced themselves in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. The five-match series is poised at 1-1 with the third Test scheduled to commence on December 14 at The Gabba in Brisbane. It is worth noting that, further loss in the series might hamper India’s chances of making it to the World Test Championship 2025 final.