Rohit may quit Tests if India fail in Australia, says Srikkanth

India must start planning for Rohit Sharma's successor if the team do not play well in their five-Test series in Australia as the captain could well retire from the longest format, former skipper Krishnamachari Srikkanth has said.

Rohit retired from Twenty20 internationals after delivering India's second World Cup trophy in June but the 37-year-old has struggled for form and admitted to his leadership lapses in the recent 3-0 home Test whitewash by New Zealand.

India arrived in South Africa on Monday for a four-T20I series against the Proteas, with the first match in Durban on Friday.

They head to Australia needing to win four out of their five Tests to reach a third successive World Test Championship final next year and could be without Rohit for the opener in Perth starting on November 22 for personal reasons.

“You have to start thinking ahead. If Rohit Sharma doesn't do well, I think he himself will retire from Test cricket, for all you know,” Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel.

“He'll play ODIs only. He has already left T20I cricket. We have to keep in mind that he's also ageing.”

Rohit has scored 4,270 runs in Test cricket at an average of 42.27 but his recent form has come under the microscope.

He has made only one half-century in his last 10 innings, with six single-digit scores, and was guilty of playing reckless shots at important moments against the Black Caps.

Srikkanth, also a former chief selector, said the skipper was right to accept his shortcomings in a press conference.

“Hats off to Rohit for accepting that he played badly throughout the series and captained badly. That's a great thing,” Srikkanth added.

“That's the first move of a player to get back to rhythm. Accepting your fault is very important. That's a very important quality of a human being.

“He accepted it openly. That means he's on the road to recovery, that's my opinion.”

After India's batting frailties were brutally exposed in the series defeat by New Zealand, Sharma said it was important that his players get in the right frame of mind for what promises to be a challenging tour of Australia.

The Black Caps became the first team to whitewash India at home in a series featuring three or more Tests after the hosts faltered while chasing 147 in Mumbai on Sunday.

After being dismissed for 46 and 156 in Bengaluru and Pune, the latest capitulation left Indian great Sachin Tendulkar wondering whether it was just poor shot selection that let them down or if they lacked preparation and match practice.

India's batters must now prepare for the switch from the turning tracks on home soil to the pace and bounce of Australian pitches, with the opening Test in Perth looming on Nov. 22.

“We do talk a lot about the game but sitting with every individual and telling them what needs to be done or how they need to get their mindset right is going to be challenging,” Rohit said.

“They come with a certain mindset, certain thinking about their own games. It has given them success in the past. But we all understand Australia is going to be a different ball game.”

The 37-year-old added that it would be crucial to create the right atmosphere for those players who have not yet experienced the intensity of a Test in Australia.

“For the young players who haven't been there before, it'll be important to create an environment where they are comfortable and aren't intimidated by where they're playing and who they're playing against,” he said.

“It's important that from our side, we keep telling them that it's another place to play cricket.”

India will prepare for the series with three days of match simulations after scrapping a practice game.

India, who beat Australia away in 2018-19 and 2020-21, play five matches Down Under this time around and need to win four of them to reach a third successive World Test Championship final next year.

Reuters