The controversial scenario which was created around Rohit Sharma not being included in the Australian tour has finally come to an end as a BCCI official has confirmed that Rohit Sharma will be part of test squad for the last two tests against Australia. Rohit is expected to leave for Australia on 14th December. Rohit will undergo mandatory COVID-19 tests before leaving and on arrival in Australia before going into 14 day quarantine. He won’t be with the Indian team during this isolation period as the Indian side has already done their isolation and are now in the bio bubble put up by the Cricket Australia.
Rohit Sharma was not included in the squad which was supposed to tour Australia right after the IPL. The reason for his exclusion was stated as he was under observation for his hamstring injury which he faced during an IPL match against KXIP. The questions were raised by the fans and experts because after the squad was announced for the Australian tour, Mumbai Indians social media handle posted a video of Rohit Sharma striking the ball out of the park in the nets. This raised many questions as the fans and experts started questioning the BCCI for the reason stated by them. Head coach of the Indian team Ravi Shastri gave a statement regarding this saying that if he [Rohit Sharma] plays in any games in the remainder of the IPL, he might get seriously injured which might take a long time to recover. He gave his own example while stating this and said that he regretted the decision afterwards. More doubts were raised as Rohit played for the Mumbai Indians in the playoffs and led them to 5 title win in the tournament. He was not at all seen in any discomfort during the time he was in the field and batted well too.
The captain was unaware about Rohit’s condition and didn’t have any updates on him. The BCCI then arranged a call between the captain Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and head coach Ravi Shastri. This helped clear a lot of issues and Rohit final assessment was announced to be done on 11th December. This assessment was done under Rahul Dravid and the selectors were present as well during the assessment. His skill and fitness were tested to the highest level before deciding on his inclusion. The final report submitted by Rahul Dravid declared him fit for the tests and he will be on flight to Australia within next 2-3 days.
He will play a crucial role in the team in absence of Kohli who will leave for India as he is expecting birth of his first child.
