Former Indian captain Rohit Sharma joined India's white-ball nets at the IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali on Wednesday, drawing all attention despite the presence of emerging stars and newly-appointed T20 skipper Shreyas Iyer.
Fitness and Focus
Speculation over Rohit's fitness had been rife after his recent lay-off, but PTI had reported on Tuesday that the veteran opener had received clearance. On Wednesday, he began his session away from the batting nets, spending time with strength and conditioning coach Adrian Le Roux before doing light shuttle runs alongside Ishan Kishan. There was no visible discomfort, indicating his body was responding well.
Batting Session
Once padded up, Rohit faced fast bowlers and spinners for nearly an hour. Initially scratchy, he was trapped lbw by Nitish Kumar Reddy. However, he gradually found his timing, leaving deliveries from Gurnoor Brar and Prince Yadav, and playing defensive prods. The first sign of aggression came when he flicked Arshdeep Singh over deep mid-wicket, then steered a wide yorker from Prince. There were still imperfections, such as a mistimed pull shot against Gurnoor, but his fluency improved against spinners, launching straight sixes off an off-break net bowler.
Personal Benchmarks
Rohit's session was about rebuilding rhythm rather than dominating. The cricketing world debates his form, but his challenge is personal. Wednesday's net session offered a glimpse of a champion batter working his way back into form.
