Rohit Sharma's captaincy skills questioned by Sanjay Manjrekar© BCCI/Sportzpics
India captain Rohit Sharma erred with his decision-making in the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru. At the beginning, Rohit made the wrong call to bat first on a tricky surface under overcast conditions, then allowed New Zealand batters to settle and stitch partnerships. As the Kiwis concluded the first session with a 299-run lead, former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar took to social media and shared a critical post on Rohit's captaincy. Manjrekar highlighted a big loophole in Rohit's captaincy while giving MS Dhoni's reference.
India seemed to have made their way back into the game after the dismissals of Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell, Glenn Phillips and Matt Henry early on Day 3. But, Rachin Ravindra and Tim Southee then went on to add an unbeaten partnership of 112 runs from 97 balls for the 8th wicket.
As frustration became easily visible on Rohit's face, Manjrekar said that Rohit needs to develop a captaincy skill that Dhoni had in abundance.
"Dhoni had this very unique ability to preempt & make a bowling change before the damage went out of control. Rohit needs to bring that quality into his leadership," Manjrekar wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
Dhoni had this very unique ability to preempt & make a bowling change before the damage went out of control. Rohit needs to bring that quality into his leadership. #IndvNz
— Sanjay Manjrekar (@sanjaymanjrekar) October 18, 2024
After the end of play on Day 2, Rohit admitted to the press that he was at fault for the situation India find themselves in.
"We thought it wouldn't help the seamers much after the first session or so. There wasn't much grass either. We expected it to be much flatter than it turned out to be. It was a misjudgment on my part, and I couldn't read the pitch well. I am hurting to see this score of 46 as a captain as it was my call to bat first. But one or two bad calls in a year is quite alright," Rohit admitted.
With a comprehensive lead, New Zealand have taken one step towards winning the Bengaluru Test.