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File image of Rohit Sharma.© AFP
Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from Test cricket ahead of India's five-match Test series in England in June. Amid reports that Rohit was set to be removed from captaincy, the 37-year-old announced his retirement from the longest format of the game. Rohit's retirement came after a disastrous tour of Australia, during which he managed just 31 runs in five innings. South Africa great Daryll Cullinan has spoken strongly on Rohit's retirement, however, stating that India will not miss him much in Tests.
Rohit retired having made 4,301 runs in 67 Test matches at an average of over 40, as well as winning 12 out of his 24 Tests as captain of India. However, Cullinan felt that his retirement from Test cricket was long overdue.
"Rohit's retirement was probably long overdue in terms of test cricket away from India. Let's be honest about it," Cullinan said, speaking to Hindustan Times.
"He hasn't really been the player that he throughout his career has been at home and we saw reluctance from him in recent Australian series to really take it on and lead from the front. So I don't see that as being a loss for India at all," Cullinan added.
Prior to the 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, Rohit had also had a rough patch with the bat during the Test series against New Zealand.
Rohit's last good run of form with the bat in Test cricket came when India hosted England in early 2024. Rohit slammed more than 400 runs with the bat across five Tests in that series.
Rohit's retirement has left India with a big hole to fill for the England series in terms of the captain, and not only with the bat. Sources have pointed that Shubman Gill is set to take over as India's new Test captain.
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