‘Not many captains do that’ – Irfan Pathan praises Rohit Sharma for his decision to opt out of SCG Test

Former Indian star Irfan Pathan has praised Rohit Sharma for his decision to opt out of the SCG Test match. The 37-year-old stepped away just a day before the game, and Jasprit Bumrah was named as the stand-in skipper for the game. The move was on expected lines, as Rohit had been in bad form with the bat. 

During his chat with Star Sports, the 40-year-old said, “It is better to leave if your batter is not able to do the talking. Rohit Sharma thought about the team and added a better player, Shubman Gill, to the playing XI. Every player can’t keep himself out of the team when he is leading the side. You don’t see that often.”

Irfan Pathan also added, “It is a selfless decision, and what Captain Rohit did today, you will not see many captains doing that. It can only happen when you are secure. Rohit is a very secure player.”

Jasprit Bumrah reveals reason behind Rohit missing SCG Test

Stand-in skipper Bumrah said during the toss, “Our captain has shown leadership by opting to rest in this game. That shows there's a lot of unity in this team. There's no selfishness. Whatever is in the team's best interest, we are looking to do that.”

The 31-year-old said, “We've played some really good cricket in this series. The last match was pretty exciting. Hopefully, we can put up a good show. It seems to be some grass. It doesn't look to have too many demons or look too spicy. Obviously there will be a challenge with the new ball, but if you get through it, it's always a good batting track." 

Meanwhile, former India batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has come out and spoken about the alleged feud between Rohit and Gautam Gambhir. During his chat with India Today, Gavaskar said, “Every time the Indian team has not done well, these things about rifts and all that come up. It is a common story. It's almost as if we people feel that the Indian team cannot lose. So, if they lose, there has to be some reason other than cricketing."

The 75-year-old also added, “I don't think any of the players really give a thought to what has been written. They just want to focus on how to get better than what they were in the previous test."