Ashwin's Advice to Rohit: 'Silence the Critics Before Champions Trophy'

‘Rohit has to silence the critics’, Ashwin’s advice to the Indian captain before the Champions Trophy

Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who has retired from international cricket, said that this is a difficult time for Rohit Sharma, who is in poor form, and the Indian captain will have to try to silence his critics by performing strongly with his bat before the upcoming Champions Trophy. The former legendary Indian spinner says that Rohit Sharma is no longer in a position to defend his form.

Disappointing from Rohit’s point of view

Rohit had dropped himself from the team due to poor form in the final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. Returning to international cricket after a month, he scored just two runs in the Nagpur ODI against England. Ashwin said on his YouTube channel, ‘It is not easy. If you look at it from Rohit’s point of view, it is obviously disappointing for him. He wants to focus on the series. He understands that he has done well in this format and he would like it to be good.’

People will definitely ask questions

The former off-spinner said, ‘But people will definitely ask questions. Cricket fans will obviously ask. This is a difficult time. You cannot stop these questions. How long will they stop? This will continue until he performs.’ Rohit has scored just 166 runs in his last 16 innings in all formats. He said, ‘As a cricketer, I understand what Rohit is going through. It is not easy. I pray that he performs well and scores a century in this series.’

Ashwin praises Jadeja

India won the first ODI against England by four wickets in Nagpur on Thursday. The second ODI will be played in Cuttack on Sunday. Ashwin, meanwhile, heaped praise on Ravindra Jadeja and insisted that the all-rounder is more talented than him. Jadeja remained unbeaten on 12 off 10 balls while chasing the target after taking three wickets for 26 runs in his nine overs in the first ODI.

Jadeja relevant in every aspect of the game

He said, ‘Our media fails to appreciate when a player performs well. Whenever we lose, everyone becomes a villain. He dismissed Joe Root. Jadeja remains relevant in every aspect of the game. He is a good bowler and bats under pressure. He is also an amazing fielder. Jadeja is much more impressive than me. While fielding, he can run from one end of the entire field to the other even at this age.’