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NEW DELHI, Feb 9: Rohit Sharma, a bonafide white-ball legend, will face his biggest test as India's red-ball captain against a determined Australian side which would be hungry for revenge when the much-awaited Border-Gavaskar series starts here on Thursday. It is a series that promises a lot of twists and turns, engrossing sub-plots and probably career-defining performances.
It's such a high-profile rubber that non-performance could lead to end of career for some after this series. The back-to-back series defeats in their own den (2018-19 and 2020-21) have hurt Cummins and his players and they certainly have revenge on its mind, even though it will be easier said than done on a pitch that promises appreciable turn from first day itself. The quality of India versus Australia Test matches since the epic 2001 series has, at times, been better than the Ashes. The journey of this batch of Australian cricketers won't be complete if they don't emulate the exploits of the Matthew Haydens, Justin Langers, Glenn McGraths or the Adam Gilchrists of 2004. Steve Smith put it aptly, saying a series win in India will be bigger than the Ashes.
For Rohit, who has unfortunately missed all the Test matches or series against bigger teams either due to injuries (hamstring vs South Africa and split webbing vs Bangladesh in 2022) or illness (Covid-19 vs England in the one-off game), would like to emulate his predecessor Kohli in leading the team to another World Test Championship final.
For that to happen, India will need a clear two-match victory margin and Rohit's biggest weapon of execution will be his quartet of spinners, out of which three are supposed to play. Not to forget, his batters need to rise up to Nathan Lyon's challenge. The hosts haven't been up to scratch when they play slow bowlers on rank turners.
Those who have followed the developments in Indian cricket, know that Rohit was initially reluctant to take up red-ball captaincy and is yet to face any major opposition as leader in the format.
This is the series which will actually chart his legacy as a leader.
No one knows how he must have felt when the BCCI removed him from T20I captaincy after the World Cup defeat in Australia last year. But knowing Rohit, he will never say a word publicly though he would definitely have been hurt.
The decisions he takes during the series will go a long way in defining his leadership qualities in testing times.
He will miss Rishabh Pant, his biggest game-changer, and how the team adjusts to the keeper-batter's absence will be the most important aspect during the series.
Kona Bharat's ability as a keeper is impressive but despite a triple hundred at the Ranji level, one isn't quite sure about his capabilities as a batter while facing high-quality Test match bowling.
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