Had an argument with coach and selector, tried putting team first

Rohit Sharma has revealed that he had an “argument” with Gautam Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar over his decision to sit out of the Sydney Test during Border-Gavaskar series in January this year.
“I spoke to the coach and the selector, and they kind of agreed, not agreed, …. there was an argument around it,” Rohit told former Australian captain Michael Clarke during the Beyond23 Cricket podcast. This newspaper had reported then about how Rohit wasn’t dropped, but had made the decision to opt out on his own.
“I had to be honest with myself. I wasn’t hitting the ball well. I didn’t want to put myself there only because we had dropped the other guys who were struggling as well,” he said.
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“We somehow wanted [Shubman] Gill to play, he’s such a good player. He missed out in the previous Test match. I’m like… okay, if I’m not hitting the ball well, it is right now. Things can change five days later, ten days later,” Rohit said. The Indian captain, who had missed the first Test due to paternity leave, had failed in subsequent Tests at Adelaide, Brisbane, and Melbourne.
Rohit explained his rationale for sitting out of the Sydney Test. “You try and put the team first, you just look at what the team wants, and make the decision accordingly. Sometimes it will work, sometimes it may not. That’s how it goes. Every decision you try and make, you aren’t guaranteed success,” said Rohit.
Rohit also opened up on his decision to open in the penultimate Test in Melbourne, after batting in the middle-order to accommodate KL Rahul as opener in the previous games.
“”I didn’t have a great game (in Adelaide). Then I went back to the room, and I was like, I should have opened, man. I would rather fail doing what I do and where I do it. That’s my place, that’s my position. I would rather go there and bat, whether I get success or not, it’s a different story. But I’m in my natural position for the team,” he told Clarke.Story continues below this ad
“”And I said, no. It’s only one game. Let’s not overthink, let’s give it another game. It’s 1-1. We can try and change things around in Brisbane. And then, it was a draw. When we got back to Melbourne, we changed our mind. I went back to open the innings.”
He shared his captaincy philosophy of putting the team first. “Since I started captaining the national team, I just felt that not just me but the rest of the guys also need to think alike and put the team first, do what is necessary for the team, and not worry about my runs, my score and my hundred, my five wickets. Because it is important, you are playing team sport, if you get 100 and not cross the finishing line, what’s the use?”