Former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has called upon Rohit Sharma to trust his defensive technique, and not rely on 'attacking shots' as a crutch when he is under pressure. The Indian captain's form off late in the longest format has come under severe scrutiny, and after the embarrassing 0-3 series loss against New Zealand, even Rohit admitted that he wasn't neither at his best as a captain nor as a captain.
In the three-match series against New Zealand, Rohit managed just 91 runs in six innings. In the recently-concluded Wankhede Test, which India lost by 25 runs, after failing to chase 147, Rohit Sharma managed scores of 18 and 11. Dinesh Karthik now thinks that 'intent' is becoming Rohit Sharma's "safe space".
"As a batter, what Rohit Sharma has done since the time he's taken over captaincy, mainly in white ball cricket, the one thing that he's infused is he's been the torchbearer for intent. He's shown the aggressive intent, he's liked doing it and has been successful doing it. Now is his time where he's unsuccessful. But, my question to Rohit Sharma would be, that intent is a positive one for white ball cricket, one Indian cricket very much needed," Dinesh Karthik said on Cricbuzz.
"In this cricket, what I feel is that intent is getting him into a safe space where he feels when in trouble, use that. It's not a method where he's using it like he's using it in white ball cricket, one that Indian team needed. Here, a lot of times, today's knock, I'm not too fussed about, but what I'm saying in general is, when he is beaten a couple of times, when he is put under a little bit of pressure, an immediate instinct is to play an attacking shot fraught with risk. Now, with that comes the ability to get out as well," he added.
'Rohit Sharma's safe space is to attack'
{{/usCountry}}"In this cricket, what I feel is that intent is getting him into a safe space where he feels when in trouble, use that. It's not a method where he's using it like he's using it in white ball cricket, one that Indian team needed. Here, a lot of times, today's knock, I'm not too fussed about, but what I'm saying in general is, when he is beaten a couple of times, when he is put under a little bit of pressure, an immediate instinct is to play an attacking shot fraught with risk. Now, with that comes the ability to get out as well," he added.
'Rohit Sharma's safe space is to attack'
{{/usCountry}}Dinesh Karthik did not mince his words, as he clearly stated that Rohit Sharma is indeed under pressure in the longest format. He also called upon the senior batter to trust his defensive technique.
"I think his safe space right now, in Rohit Sharma's case, is to attack. hen in that, he feels he is a lot more comfortable doing because he's seen that success. But when it doesn't go right, it always will give the image that it has given so far," Dinesh Karthik said.
"So, the one thing that Rohit Sharma is not doing, which he did very well when he took up his role as an opener, is trust his technique. He went to England. He left a lot of balls. He decided that I can play shots. But what I am going to do is, anything outside the off-stump, I am going to let it go. I am going to have the mental strength to bat long. He got a 100. He got a 90," he added.
Speaking further, Dinesh Karthik said, "So, I think that's where he needs to go back to. To trust his ability to defend and see through tough faces. Yes, attack is an option. But that will only come better if you trust your technique. Because you are worried you might get out defending or playing a soft shot, you are trying to attack. Then, that is fraught with risk. Because if it doesn't come off, it looks silly."
Rohit Sharma just managed one fifty plus score in the series against New Zealand. It is important to mention that Rohit also did not register even one half century in the series against Bangladesh.
Rohit's last Test ton came in March 2024 when he played a knock of 103 runs against England in the Dharamsala Test.