NEW DELHI: It seems all is not well for Rohit Sharma after his failure in the first ODI against Australia in Perth on Sunday. The pressure appears to have mounted on the former ODI captain to either perform or perish.
If Rohit fails to fire in the second ODI, he is likely to be replaced by Yashasvi Jaiswal for the third and final match. According to Sports Yaari sources, the Adelaide ODI could potentially be his last international appearance.
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Rohit is leaving no stone unturned in his bid to regain rhythm, even turning up for the optional nets session on the eve of the second match against Australia at the Adelaide Oval.
The only member of the coaching staff present when Rohit began his nets session was head coach Gautam Gambhir, accompanied by throwdown specialists Dayanand Garani and Raghavendra. The rest of the support staff joined a little later.
Rohit initially walked into a damp practice net, where the throwdowns were zipping awkwardly off the surface.
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Realising the risk of injury to his senior-most player, Gambhir promptly asked Rohit to move to a different net, where the opener went on to have a lengthy batting session. Throughout the practice, Gambhir's gaze remained fixed firmly on Rohit.
With Shubman Gill taking over as India's ODI captain, Rohit's place in the playing XI is no longer a certainty. While the team management is unlikely to drop him after just one failure, Rohit now faces serious long-term competition from Jaiswal for the opening slot alongside Gill.
Rohit, who is now a one-format player having retired from T20Is and Tests, did not last long against Australia's potent pace attack on a bouncy Perth track in the series opener.
