I suspected Rohit Sharma would step down as captain before the 2022 IPL, similar to how Virat Kohli did: Sanjay Manjrekar
Former India player and commentator Sanjay Manjrekar believes that, ahead of the IPL 2022. Rohit Sharma will follow in the footsteps of Virat Kohli and hand over the Mumbai Indians captaincy baton to Kieron Pollard in order to focus solely on his batting. It should be note that Rohit has struggled a lot as a batter for the Mumbai Indians over the last few seasons.
On Tuesday (April 12), Manjrekar addressed the issue. Adding that all-rounder Kieron Pollard adds a lot of value to the team’s set-up. He also revealed that, despite his poor performance this season (47 runs in four innings). He had envisioned a leadership role for the Caribbean player. Pollard, according to Manjrekar, only needs one good game to regain his usual form, and the 34-year-old is doing his job well.
“I believe Pollard continues to add value.” [Before the season], I even thought Rohit Sharma might leave captaincy like Virat Kohli, relax a little, play as a pure batter, and hand the responsibility to Pollard, who is an excellent international captain,” Manjrekar told ESPNCricinfo.
“Pollard still has the ability, as evidenced by the sixes he hits. He’ll play a role in the pressure match, or the crunch game. But they have to get there first, which is not Pollard’s fault and never has been. Throughout the season, he has made no contributions for the Mumbai Indians. He pitches one inning in a high-pressure game and gets the team through it. Others must improve their performance because Pollard is doing his usual job,” he added.
Also Visit: Axar Patel Recalls the Indian Cricket Team’s Reaction to MS Dhoni’s Retirement Announcement
Rohit Sharma, according to Manjrekar, should be more selfish and bat freely.
After stepping down as captain of the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Indian team’s T20 side. Kohli was quickly replaced by Rohit Sharma in the Test and ODI formats as well. While Sharma was named India’s all-formats captain, Faf du Plessis was named Virat Kohli’s replacement at the RCB camp.
Sharma has had a successful career with his national team, but he has struggled with MI in the IPL 2022, as the five-time champions have yet to open their account and are ranked last in the points table. In terms of Sharma’s batting form, Manjrekar believes that the skipper and opening batter will need to open up and bring out his game in order to perform freely.
“His record has been like this for the last 3-4 seasons, with an average strikeout rate of less than 30 and a strikeout rate of less than 150 or 160.” When he plays for India, his numbers improve… because he is only concerned with himself and not with the team. When he plays in the IPL, he tries to play the anchor role, as KL Rahul did with the Punjab Kings and Hardik Pandya did in the previous match. If he is allowed to play freely, we will see the Rohit Sharma we see in Indian cricket,” Manjrekar added.
Also Read: David Warner Discusses Life With The Delhi Capitals After Return To Franchise