Although Rohit Sharma is expecting a second child, a son to be specific, the captain of the Indian team is still not certain to participate in the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy played in Australia. It would be imperative for the Indian Skipper to be present for the series opener in Australia, but addressed to Rohit, former cricketer Surinder Khanna conveyed warm regards but pointed out that the series has a lot of stakes and he should be with the team. Rohit had earlier told BCCI that he would withdraw from the first Test for obvious reasons – the birth of the second child. With Rohit definitely out of the picture, Jasprit Bumrah who is the vice-captain will be taking over the captaincy reigns for India.
To begin with, I want to take this opportunity to extend my heartiest congratulations to Rohit and his family on the arrival of their newborn baby boy and wish them the very best. But now the family is full with a son and a daughter and Rohit must come back and play the Test match. I remember when I got married, I had to come back for a game even on the same evening of my wedding reception. It was 4 in the morning when I entered my room and my wife was waking me up for a flight for a match. That is the kind of passion which is the hallmark of all players – Khanna told IANS.
India face Australia, but they also have to deal with the team’s recent performances against New Zealand. India suffered a 0-3 whitewash against the Kiwis, which was worse because they lost the final Test at Wankhede Stadium by 25 runs within three days of play. It was also the first time India lost a home Test series without winning a single match since the year 2000 and first in history for defeat in a series of over three tests. This unfortunate outcome has already dampened their build-up towards the all-important series with Australia.
The opening Test match will commence on November 22 at Perth Australia. The second Test match in the ongoing series will be played in Adelaide starting from December 6, then Chef’s in Melbourne Brisbane on December 14. Melbourne will also host the Boxing Day Test on December 26 and the fifth – final Test – in the series will commence on January 3, 2025, in Sydney Australia.
It would be the first occasion when the two nations, India and Australia, will play a series of five Test matches. The upcoming series is very important for India looking ahead to the World Test Championship (WTC) Final after losing against New Zealand recently as currently India’s points percentage stands at 58.33% which puts them second in the standings behind table leader Australia.
In order to make it to the third WTC final for the third consecutive time, India has to win a minimum of four of the five Tests.
