It was a disappointing night for Team India as the side endured a crushing 10-wicket loss to England, bowing out of the T20 World Cup in the semi-final in Adelaide. The opening duo of Alex Hales (86*) and Jos Buttler (80*) smashed the Indian bowlers around the park, forging an unbeaten 170-run stand to take the English team to the final of the tournament, where it takes on Pakistan at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground.
After being invited to bat in Adelaide, India’s worries in the opening order continued as KL Rahul was dismissed on 5, while Rohit Sharma also failed to make a mark with a 28-ball 27. Virat Kohli (50) and Hardik Pandya (63) eventually helped steer the side to 168/6 in 20 overs but the bowlers endured a poor day on the field in the run-chase.
India’s skipper Rohit Sharma had a forgettable tournament in Australia, registering only one fifty and scoring only 116 runs in six innings at a disappointing average of 19.33. Rohit’s captaincy decisions during the semi-final of the tournament were also questioned by experts, and former Indian cricketer Ajay Jadeja has drawn a rather straightforward review of Rohit’s term as India’s T20I captain so far.
“Main ek baat bolunga jo chubhegi agar Rohit Sharma sunenge, agar team banaani hai kisi captain ko, toh usko saare saal team ke saath rehna padta hai. Poore saal me Rohit Sharma kitne daure pe rahe? Ye hindsight me nahi keh raha, ye main pehle bhi bola hu. Aapne team bani hai, aur aap saath nahi rehte. Coach bhi New Zealand nahi jaa rahe. (J would say one thing which might hurt Rohit Sharma. If you have to make a team as captain, you have to stick with the side for the entire year. How many series did Rohit Sharma play this year? I’m not saying this in hindsight, I’ve been saying this since before. Even in New Zealand, the coach isn’t travelling),” Jadeja said on Cricbuzz.
“Ghar ka ek hi buzurg hona chahiye, saat buzurg honge toh bhi dikkat hai. (There should only be one leader in the team. If there are 7, it would be difficult).” the former India player said further.
This year, India saw a number of captains across different bilateral T20I series; while Rishabh Pant had led the side in a five-match T20I series against South Africa in June, Hardik Pandya captained India against Ireland.