Captain Rohit to miss Sydney Test, 'opts to rest'

THE EARLY HINT of India captain Rohit Sharma sitting out of the final Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at Sydney came from head coach Gautam Gambhir.

- SRIRAM VEERA

"We shall look at the pitch and take a call tomorrow," he said at the pre-match press conference here on Thursday.

It's rare for the inclusion of a team captain being subject to the nature of the pitch.

Later, Rohit had a light net session, facing a few casual throwdowns. There was no official announcement, but by evening the word was out - Rohit, who has been struggling for runs, had "opted to rest" while vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah would lead the side.

The team seemed to take the change at the top in its stride. After the press conference, Rohit, Bumrah and Gambhir were seen sitting in the bucket-seats outside their dressing room - chatting, back-slapping and laughing. After this short meeting, Rohit walked towards the team bus, to be greeted by a roar from a small crowd lined up outside. "Rohit, Rohit," they chanted, and the rested captain gave a big smile as he sauntered into the bus.

It was an unusual day. The pre-match press conference, slated to start at 1.10 pm, started nearly half-an-hour late; word came out that the team was in a meeting. Gambhir and Bumrah could be seen engrossed in a long chat before Rohit joined them.