Sunil Gavaskar Questions Rohit Sharma Ranji Trophy Stint Over BCCI Contract Obligations

India’s legend Sunil Gavaskar has raised critical questions about Rohit Sharma’s participation in the Ranji Trophy, suggesting that senior players might only be fulfilling BCCI contract obligations. Rohit returned to the tournament after a 13-year hiatus but managed just 31 runs across two innings (3 and 28) in Mumbai’s match against Jammu & Kashmir. His aggressive approach, which failed on a challenging pitch, drew criticism from Gavaskar, who emphasized the need for a balance between caution and aggression.

Mumbai, despite featuring stars like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, and Ajinkya Rahane, faced an upset defeat to J&K. Shardul Thakur stood out with a century, showcasing the grit and technique Gavaskar believes were missing in the top order. The BCCI had mandated the participation of national players in Ranji Trophy games, but Gavaskar questioned if their efforts were genuine or motivated by contract security, citing past examples of players losing central contracts due to non-participation. He said:

The BCCI and the coach’s insistence on the Indian players playing in the Ranji Trophy meant that most of the players who were on the disastrous tour of Australia turned up for their State teams in the Ranji Trophy. Whether their hearts were in it or they did that only to ensure they were not stripped of their BCCI contracts, like Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer were, after missing out on the Ranji Trophy games last year, is known only to them.

The inclusion of Rohit and Jaiswal led to the exclusion of young talent Ayush Mhatre, who recently scored a century. However, Gavaskar suggested the youngster could benefit from sharing the dressing room with seasoned players. The match highlighted both the challenges of form and the impact of team composition decisions.