Following India’s loss to Australia in the second Test, former Indian cricketer Atul Wassan opened up on inconsistent form of star batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, saying that they will have to perform well consistently as living on past laurels will make things difficult for them as they age but expectations stay the same. He also opined that the ‘Hitman’ batting down the order at number six was a wrong move.
After the birth of his second child which caused him to miss the first Test at Perth, which was a memorable win by 295 runs, Rohit’s return to cricket was far from spectacular, as not only he succumbed to double digits during struggled-filled outings down the order at number six, the team also succumbed to a 10-wicket loss in the pink-ball Test within just three days at Adelaide.
After a century at Perth, Virat struggled with outside off-stump deliveries yet again, scoring just seven and 11 runs in the match. Speaking to ANI, Atul said that as Rohit-Virat age, their exploits with the bat will get lesser and it happens as player’s age.
“Look, I knew this focus would come on Virat and Rohit. This would come again and again. But look, their exploits, you will start seeing less of it as they age. When you get older, it happens. You think that he will do it in every match. That is not possible. But their value is worth its weight in gold. Because them standing there, their staying in the team, adds depth in the team.
That is very important. But you have to perform. You cannot survive on your past laurels and reputation. Your past body of work can only give you this much leverage. Then it starts troubling you when expectations get high, but your potency is low as you age. I think it is very important for them to stay and pull their weight,” he said.
In the ongoing 2024-25 Test season, Rohit has made 142 runs in six Tests across 12 innings at an average of 11.83, with best score of 52 an