"Got a little greedy to pick up a few quick runs" - Sanjay Manjrekar on Rohit Sharma's dismissal in 4th innings of WTC 2023 final
Sanjay Manjrekar believes that a lapse of concentration cost Team India skipper Rohit Sharma his wicket in the fourth innings of the ongoing ICC World Test Championship (WTC 2023) final against Australia at The Oval.
Sharma was off to a promising start with the bat on Day 4, scoring an impressive looking 43 before falling to Nathan Lyon in the 20th over. The right-handed batter perished while trying to lap one down to the fine leg region.
However, he failed to get any connection and was adjudged LBW. Manjrekar opined that Sharma was perhaps looking to accumulate some quick runs once the spinner came into the attack, which ultimately led to his downfall.
Speaking about the Indian captain's dismissal, the cricketer-turned-commentator told ESPNcricinfo:
"That is something that happens when a spinner comes on and you've played three quality seamers out, and something happens where you don't actually drop your guard, but you suddenly feel maybe there is a chance here to get some runs. The T20, or white-ball shot, came out of the psyche of Rohit Sharma. The ball was just around the wicket, straight; nothing special there."
"It was just maybe a lapse of concentration in a way trying to get some runs, maybe a bit too eager, but once he went down on the knees, and much to his chagrin, the ball was a little shorter than he would have liked. If it was a bit fuller, that shot would have been executed. So, I have to call that a lapse of concentration. He just got a little greedy to pick up a few quick runs."
Rohit Sharma ❌
Cheteshwar Pujara ❌
India lose two wickets in quick succession due to some poor shot selection 😣
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During the discussion, former Australian keeper Brad Haddin suggested that Sharma erred in terms of his shot selection. He emphasized that Lyon had opted to come around the stumps hoping for an LBW, and he eventually succeeded in doing so.
He remarked:
"He (Rohit Sharma) has played it a number of times and you'd feel comfortable, but that's exactly what Nathan Lyon Wanted Rohit Sharma to do. He had been around the wicket for that exact reason to bring LBW into the game."
"I just think it's probably one that Rohit Sharma didn't need to play. He looked in total control. Nathan Lyon was doing a lot off the wicket, but that was one way he was trying to get Rohit Sharma out. So, one-nil there to Nathan Lyon."
With India required to chase down an imposing 444-run target to win the WTC 2023 final, Sharma needed to contribute significantly with the bat. However, the senior batter failed to convert his start on yet another occasion.
"He knows how to get the big scores" - Sanjay Manjrekar on Rohit Sharma
Sanjay Manjrekar also spoke about how Rohit Sharma has thrown away his wicket after being well set a number of times in red-ball cricket. He pointed out that it is tough to identify why that has been happening, given that the batter has played big knocks in the past.
Manjrekar elaborated:
"It is very difficult to actually put it in a very simple way. With some batters, you can say that there is a genuine problem of lapse of concentration. These are guys who will get to 40,50 and 60, and get out. This a guy who has got two hundreds in his first two innings of his Test career. So, he knows how to get the big scores."
"Even in that series against England, he had a hundred, and an eighty. But he looked a million-dollar right through the series. This is not so much Rohit Sharma losing concentration, but I guess there is some difference in a Rohit Sharma playing in that fashion versus somebody like a Virat Kohli in his prime who is never going to give you a chance."
It is worth mentioning that Sharma endured a failed outing in the first innings. He fell to his opposite number, Pat Cummins, after scoring just 15 runs off 26 balls.