Rohit Sharma, who took over the captaincy reigns after former captain Virat Kohli, has been receiving criticism from all corners for his captaincy after the Indian cricket team lost the first two Tests of the ongoing 3-Test match series at home.
Rohit Sharma Under Fire Following Consecutive Test Losses
The Men in Blue lost the first Test match against the New Zealand cricket team by 8 wickets and they were expected to come back stronger in the second Test match, however, they failed to impress the fans and eventually lost the second Test match by 113 runs at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on Saturday.
Notably, with this defeat Rohit Sharma became the first Indian captain since MS Dhoni to lose a Test series at home. With this win, New Zealand cricket team has taken an unassailable lead of 2-0 against India. The third and the last Test match of the ongoing 3-match Test series will kickstart on November 1 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
This was also New Zealand’s first-ever series win on Indian soil in Test cricket history. New Zealand, having won the opening match by 8 wickets, celebrated their first-ever series win in India since touring in 1955-56 under Harry Cave.
India’s last home Test series loss was in 2012, when England won 2-1 under Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s captaincy. Since then, India, led by Virat Kohli and later Rohit Sharma, has remained unbeaten in 18 home series, winning 42 matches, drawing 7, and losing only 5.
Last Home Series Loss in Tests
| Team | Year | Days |
| India | 2012 | 4331 |
| South Africa | 2020 | 1733 |
| Australia | 2021 | 1377 |
| England | 2021 | 1231 |
| Zimbabwe | 2023 | 620 |
| Sri Lanka | 2023 | 457 |
| New Zealand | 2024 | 229 |
| Bangladesh | 2024 | 206 |
| West Indies | 2024 | 70 |
| Pakistan | 2024 | 53 |
Speaking after the defeat during the post-match presentation, Rohit Sharma said:
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“It’s a collective failure. I’m not somebody who would blame just the batters or the bowlers,” Rohit said in the post-match presentation.
“Didn’t think we batted well enough to get runs on the board. You’ve got to pick 20 wickets to win, yes, but batters have to put runs on the board. Was a great fightback to restrict them to 250-odd but we knew it was going to be challenging,” Rohit said.
“When they started off, they were 200/3 and for us to come back and get them bowled out for 259 was a great effort. Wasn’t a pitch where a lot was happening. We just didn’t bat well enough,” he added.
When asked about his expectations for the remaining Test in the series before India’s upcoming five-Test tour of Australia, Rohit said: “We want to show up well at Wankhede (Stadium) and try and win that Test. We will come out with better intent, better ideas and better methods.”
Fans Call for Virat Kohli’s Aggressive Leadership Style
Rohit Sharma’s captaincy faced scrutiny after pundits questioned his tactics on Day 2 of the second Test against New Zealand in Pune. Former captain and ex-head coach Ravi Shastri expressed surprise at the defensive field placements used as New Zealand began their second innings in the second session on Friday, October 25.
Tom Latham and Will Young struck a balanced approach of caution and aggression, taking advantage of the hot afternoon conditions in Pune. Rohit Sharma appeared uncertain, struggling to strike a balance between defensive fields and more aggressive, wicket-taking setups. This allowed Latham and Young to build a lead of over 100 runs in the first innings, with singles coming too easily and minimal pressure on the batters.
Meanwhile, fans on social media are trolling Rohit Sharma after India’s defeat in the second Test match. Fans are missing former Indian captain Virat Kohli and his aggressive approach. Check out the Tweets:
Hopefully this defeat will make people realize how great Test captain Virat Kohli was. He made home test series victory look like a joke, 0 home test series defeat in 7 years🙏
Greatest Test Captain Of All Time. pic.twitter.com/MQC8KKgJ6q
— Ansh (@141Adelaide_) October 26, 2024
Can't bat
Can't ball
Can't field
Can't captain
Can't remain fit
Clueless CaptaincyIs Rohit Sharma the worst ever player to play test cricket. Virat kohli and ms dhoni was never this bad in test cricket.
— ' (@Reignofdhoni) October 25, 2024
Indian Team golden period in test cricket ended the day Virat kohli resigned.
History will be kinder to Captain Virat Kohli's Legacy. pic.twitter.com/E3mQlQbOtD
— K¹⁸. (@KrishnaVK_18) October 26, 2024
They all laugh when he left test captaincy
Now, they all are realizing that how great he was as a test captain.Virat Kohli greatest ever Test Captain of India 🤍 pic.twitter.com/VRYE16Jmnt
— OM. (@omvk18) October 25, 2024
India's greatest captain with India's greatest coach.
But Rohit Sharma PR Ruined Everything. pic.twitter.com/1ZxLBCtPLj— Wellu (@Wellutwt) October 26, 2024
Legacy of Captain Rohit Sharma. 🤣#INDvNZ #NZvsIND #NZvIND pic.twitter.com/a00MmHn3Nr
— Faiz Fazel (@theFaizFazel) October 26, 2024
Don't join us when we lift ICC cup if you keep crying for Pan masala cup
INDIA LOVE YOU ROHIT SHARMApic.twitter.com/7OhWV9ACJh
— Ctrl C Ctrl Memes (@Ctrlmemes_) October 26, 2024
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