"We ended up compromising him" - Rohit Sharma explains non-selection of key batter after defeat in BGT 2024-25 4th Test

Indian skipper Rohit Sharma has explained the thinking behind leaving out batter Shubman Gill for the fourth Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 Test. After the defeat in Melbourne, Rohit, in a press conference, stated that Gill was not dropped but left out considering the team combination.

He revealed that Gill was informed that he was not dropped and that the team wanted an extra bowling option. While they did not want to compromise on a batter, they also wanted the cushion of an extra bowler.

“The chat with him was that clearly he was not dropped. We just wanted to have that extra bit of cushion in the bowling and hence we opted for an all-rounder, which shouldn’t weaken our bowling line-up. Compromising a batter for a bowler was not something I wanted to do, we wanted to bat as deep as possible, and along with that have a bowling attack which could take 20 wickets, you know, so we considered everything and we ended up compromising him unfortunately," Rohit Sharma said via Express Sports.

The skipper also clarified that there were no questions about Shubman Gill's batting. They went for the option of an all-rounder to cover both bases, which is why the batter was eventually left out of the side.

“Look, with him (Gill), there was never a doubt that he was not batting well, or he was not scoring runs, or anything like that. It was just to get that combination where we can cover both bases, batting and bowling, we opted for that option," Rohit added.

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'We don't make personal decisions' - Rohit Sharma on picking the team

The Indian team was criticized by many for the decision to leave Shubman Gill out ahead of the fourth Test. Speculations were rife that Gill was dropped to accomodate Rohit Sharma himself, who has been struggling with the bat.

However, the skipper seems to have cleared the air in a subtle manner. He stated that decisions made are not personal but in the best interest of the team alone. He added that while picking the team, he keeps in mind the combination based on the venue and the opposition.

“We don’t make personal decisions, it is in the best interest of the team. We want to put the team ahead and think about what is the right combination for this particular venue and this opposition. So that’s how I plan picking up the team," he explained via the aforementioned source.