India MUST move on from Rohit Sharma in T20Is before 2024 T20 World Cup! Stats will prove why

After a string of poor T20 World Cups and IPL, the Indian team need to drop Rohit Sharma.

India MUST move on from Rohit Sharma in T20Is before 2024 T20 World Cup! Stats will prove why

Rohit Sharma gets bowled on the very first ball of the chase (Image via ESPN)

Rohit Sharma made his T20I debut for India in the 2007 T20I World Cup and since then has featured in every edition of the competition. He was made to shift around in various positions, but finally in the 2014 T20I World Cup he started opening for India. Since then he has had only one good World Cup campaign as a batter. 

Although in his first outing as an opener, he did pretty well. Sharma scored 200 runs in 6 innings, with half centuries against West Indies and Bangladesh. In 2016, he failed immensely, managing only 88 runs in five innings. His highest score had finally come in the semi-finals of the tournament, but in a losing cause. 

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In the 2021 T20 World Cup he did score runs, but none were against the best two teams in the group. When it came to score against Pakistan and New Zealand, the opener scored a combined 14 runs off 15 balls, which included a golden duck against Pakistan. He did score 160 in the next three matches, but they were against Afghanistan, Scotland and Namibia. 

The below-par showing continued in the 2022 World Cup as well, where he managed 116 runs in 6 innings, with a poor 27 off 28 in the semi-finals. India ended up losing that match and got knocked out of the World Cup. Since then he hasn’t played many T20Is, with Hardik Pandya taking his place as captain. 

Rohit hasn’t done well in the IPL as well. Since 2017 he has scored more than 400 runs only once, and his strike rate has also been stuck in the 120s. Finally he managed a strike rate above 130 in the 2023 IPL, but had the low average of 20.75. 

The massive break from the T20I team also affected his form. In the ongoing T20I series with Afghanistan, he has gone for ducks in both innings. Although the first was an unlucky runout, he gifted his wicket with a reckless shot in the 2nd match. With no notable T20 performance since his last T20I game and only two half centuries in the 2023 IPL, he shouldn’t be on the plane to the United States of America. Yes, he still does have the 2024 IPL to show his worth, but it would be a disservice to openers in the IPL who have been superior to him in the past few seasons. 

Openers who could replace Rohit Sharma 

If Rohit Sharma does get ejected from the Indian T20I team, they would need a world class batter to replace him. Many IPL stars have been tried out at the opener position, and only 2 have proven their worth. They are Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill. As of now it looks like Jaiswal will be given the long run, thanks to his impressive showings, but Gill still does have a lot to show for. 

Rohit Sharma
Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma (Image via ESPNcricinfo)

In the previous four IPLs, he has scored 2,291 runs, averaging 572.75 runs per IPL season. Although he was slow in the 2020 and 2021 editions of the IPL, with strike rates of 118 and 119, he improved that one factor in 2022 and 2023. In 2022, he was vital in Gujarat Titan’s maiden IPL, as he scored 483 runs with the strike rate of 132 and in 2023 he scored 890 runs with the strike rate of 157.8. He hasn’t yet shown much promise in T20Is, but he does have a century in it. In his previous innings, he did score an explosive 23 off 12 as well, showing his intent.

Another option India could look at is Virat Kohli for the opener’s slot. Throughout his T20I career, he has always batted at number 3 and has been proved valuable, but his records as an opener could be proof enough to make him open. Since 2019, Kohli opens for Royal Challengers Bangalore. 

In the 98 innings he has opened, he has scored 3611 with an average of 43.51 and a strike rate of 135.45. In comparison, Sharma has scored 2331 in 88 innings, with an average of 28.08 and strike rate of 128.86. Kohli has opened for India in 9 innings, but has scored 400 runs in 9 innings, with his only T20I century coming the last time he opened. 

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