Doubts linger over Rohit Sharma's availability in T20Is in near future

Indias ODI and Test captain Rohit Sharma is unlikely to play T20 Internationals anymore and had discussed his future in the shortest format before the start of the 50over World Cup according to sources in the BCCIRohit hasnt played a single game in the shortest format since Indias T20 World Cup semifinal exit in November 2022 Hardik Pandya has mostly led the Indian team in T20Is since thenThe 36yearold India skipper has played 148 T20Is scoring 3853 runs at a strikerate of nearly 140 with four hundredsIt is not a new development Rohit hasnt played any T20Is in past one year as the focus was on ODI World Cup He had extensive discussions with chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar in this regard He has himself volunteered to stay away from T20Is It has completely been Rohits call a senior BCCI source told PTI on conditions of anonymityAlso ReadKohliRohit rise in ODI rankings Shubman Gill consolidates top spotAfter Rohit India have four openers Shubman Gill Yashasvi Jaiswal Ishan Kishan and Ruturaj Gaikwad and all of them are proven IPL performersIf the younger crop does not perform the selectors or the BCCI brass might just ask Rohit to reconsider his current standIt is understandable that at this stage of his career Rohit would like to manage his workload and ensure that he remains mostly injury free for the remainder of his careerIt will be impossible to play three formats and IPL each year and with seven Test to be played between December 2023 to March 2024 the Indian skippers focus will be mostly on redball cricketHe still has a realistic chance of leading India to another World Test Championship WTC final in 2025 and his own form in traditional format has been superb since he started opening for India in 2019If all goes well Indias pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah will spearhead the attack in twoTest series in South Africa with Mohammed Shami and Mohammed SirajAlso ReadThe best and worsts of World Cup 2023However with five Tests in five weeks against England scheduled early next year the pace trio will be rotated during the seriesAfter his long injuryforced break from competitive cricket due to lower back stress fracture there were question marks over Bumrahs ability to play red ball cricket but those in the know of things said that the Gujarat man is ready for his comebackBumrah is fighting fit and results were there for everyone to see He is back at his peak fitness and is itching to play the Test matches With Bumrah and Shami you need to use them based on what is the priority format at a given time Bumrah will certainly play T20 World Cup if all goes well the BCCI source addedWith agency inputs