Rohit Sharma's Form: India Batting Coach Cites Conditions, Denies Pressure
India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak has dismissed concerns over captain Rohit Sharma's poor run in the ongoing ODI series against England, attributing his low scores to challenging batting conditions rather than any loss of form. Speaking after the second ODI in Cardiff, where Rohit managed 26 off 43 balls before being dismissed attempting a sweep, Kotak said the veteran opener was under no pressure.
“I don’t think that a player as big as Rohit can feel any pressure. He’s too good a player to feel that. Yes, he didn’t get runs. I don’t think that makes any difference,” Kotak said. He pointed to the double bounce on the Cardiff pitch as a factor that made stroke-making difficult. “On a day, there are a lot of batters who don’t get the momentum they are looking for, and that can happen. You might see a completely different innings from Rohit Sharma at Lord’s.”
Kotak also addressed rumours of a communication gap between Virat Kohli and head coach Gautam Gambhir, calling them baseless. “Virat and Gautam, they must have talked 10 times today. I don’t think he needs a bridge. Apart from that, what you’re saying, I don’t know where the rumours come from, but they do come.”
Discussing India’s batting collapse—they were bowled out for 233—Kotak said Washington Sundar’s hamstring injury and the quick dismissals of Axar Patel and Shivam Dube derailed the innings. He also noted that Kohli had sent a message about the slow nature of the pitch, where short balls were not coming onto the bat. “If we would have got Root out, it would have been interesting. Or if we had got another 35-40 runs, it would definitely have been interesting,” he added.
