"The way he was getting out to Matt Henry, he got out similarly against J&K in the 1st innings" - Aakash Chopra on Rohit Sharma's recent struggles

Former India player Aakash Chopra has noted that Rohit Sharma's cheap dismissals in Mumbai's recent Ranji Trophy clash against Jammu and Kashmir have compounded his problems with the bat. He pointed out that the opener's dismissal in Mumbai's first innings was similar to how Matt Henry got him out in the home Test series against New Zealand.

Mumbai suffered a five-wicket defeat against Jammu and Kashmir at home on Saturday, January 25. Rohit scored three runs off 19 deliveries in the first innings and a 35-ball 28 in the second essay.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener was asked about his thoughts on Rohit's struggle for runs.

"A time comes occasionally when you don't score runs. You come even more in the headlines when runs aren't scored even in first-class cricket. Then you are seen with a magnifying glass and kept under the microscope. His time hasn't been good," he responded (15:00).

"One thing is there for sure, the way he was getting out to Matt Henry, he got out similarly against J&K in the first innings. He got out like that in Australia as well. To get out to pace so many times, it doesn't augur well for somebody like Rohit Sharma," Chopra added.

Rohit Sharma was caught at mid-off while attempting an ungainly pull shot off Umar Nazir's bowling in Mumbai's first innings. He flicked a Yudhvir Singh delivery to the midwicket fielder's hands in the second essay.

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"Sometimes age catches up" - Aakash Chopra on Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma endured a horror run with the bat in BGT 2024-25. [P/C: Getty]

While opining that Rohit Sharma would do well in ODIs, Aakash Chopra added that age might be adversely impacting the Indian captain's eye-hand coordination in Tests.

"I feel he will still do well in ODIs. He shouldn't face that much difficulty against the white ball. However, there is a problem and it's been a slightly long time. He is also a player who relies on timing. So he needs a little more eye-hand coordination. Sometimes age catches up," he said (15:25) in the same video.

The cricketer-turned-commentator added that the stylish batter wasn't expected to have such a drastic decline.

"I don't know what it is. These are just conjectures and we talk a little that this or that could be the reason. However, it's a steep decline which I thought won't be the case for him. It has been a steep sort of decline, which is slightly sad," Chopra observed.

Rohit Sharma scored 619 runs at an average of 24.76 in 26 Test innings last year. He had a worse run in his last 15 innings, aggregating 164 runs at a paltry average of 10.93.