On Tuesday, the Mumbai Indians, five-time champions of the Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament, suffered a significant defeat against the Gujarat Titans, who are the current title holders. MI was chasing a daunting target of 208 runs, but could only manage to score 152/9 in 20 overs. The credit goes to Noor Ahmad, the Afghan spinner who took 3/37, and Rashid Khan, who took 2/27, for leading the charge for GT by taking five wickets between them.
The top-order collapse of MI was the major reason for their defeat. After this loss, former India captain Sunil Gavaskar suggested that the skipper of MI, Rohit Sharma, should take a break. Rohit was dismissed on just 2 (8) by Hardik, his counterpart, during the match.
Gavaskar suggested that Rohit should focus more on the upcoming World Test Championship (WTC) final and take a break for the time being. He said that Rohit “looks a little pre-occupied” and that he would like to see some changes in the batting order for Mumbai Indians.
“I would like to see some change in the batting order [for Mumbai Indians]. Honestly, I would also say that Rohit should maybe also take a break for the time being, and keep himself fit for the World Test Championship [final]. [He can] come back again for the last few matches, but right now, [he should] take a little bit of a breather himself,” Gavaskar said in an interview with Star Sports, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
Gavaskar also said that Rohit needs a break to clear his mind and that he should return for the last three or four matches so that he is in rhythm for the World Test Championship final. He also speculated that Rohit may be preoccupied with the WTC final at this stage, which may be affecting his performance in the IPL.
“He is looking just that little bit preoccupied. Maybe at this stage he is thinking about the WTC, I don’t know,” Gavaskar said. “But I do believe that at this stage he needs a little bit of a break, and come back for the last three or four matches so that he is in rhythm for the World Test Championship.”