Suresh Raina predicts a new captaincy style for Champions Trophy with Rohit Sharma's recent struggles

India captain Rohit Sharma is currently going through a rough patch, with poor performances across all formats of the game. In his last 16 innings, Rohit has only managed to score a total of 166 runs. This has been particularly disappointing for him, as the year 2024 turned out to be his worst year as a Test batter, with his average dropping below 25 for the first time in a calendar year. In an attempt to improve his form, Rohit recently made himself available for a Ranji Trophy match after a gap of nearly a decade. However, even in this domestic competition, he could only manage scores of 3 and 28. The expectations were high for him in the three-match ODI series against England, especially with the Champions Trophy coming up. Rohit has been a dominant force in ODI cricket for over a decade, and much was anticipated from him. Unfortunately, Rohit has been struggling to regain his rhythm and find his batting form. These recent performances certainly do not reflect his usual caliber and success in the past. However, as a talented and experienced player, it is only a matter of time before Rohit finds his stride and returns to his usual form.

However, much to the disappointment of the huge crowd at the VCA Stadium in Nagpur, which erupted as soon as they saw a padded-up Rohit Sharma walk out from the dressing room, the Indian captain lasted only 7 balls in the first ODI against England. Rohit skied an innocuous delivery from Saqib Mahmood while trying to play the flick shot that got him loads of boundaries in the past. But on Thursday, he went through with the shot way too early. The closed bat face gave him no chance and he was dismissed for 2.

This was Rohit's seventh single-digit score in his last 10 innings in international cricket. Former India batter Suresh Raina said the Jamta track was ideal for Rohit to get back in form, but the opener did not give himself enough time to assess the pace of the wicket.

"I think this wicket would have been a good one for Rohit Sharma’s comeback had he applied himself a bit more," Raina said on Sports18.

With less than two weeks to go before India's first match against Bangladesh in the Champions Trophy, Rohit's form will be one concern for the Indian team management.

Raina, who has played a lot of white-ball cricket and has seen him grow into one of the biggest names of Indian cricket, said if Rohit somehow manages to score runs in the remaining two ODIs in Cuttack and Ahmedabad, then a different kind of captain will turn up in the Champions Trophy.

"Now, the team will move to Cuttack, where he could also perform well. If he finds form before the Champions Trophy, then we’ll see a different kind of captain and a different kind of approach from him," said Raina.

India got off to a winning start courtesy of some fantastic bowling performances by Ravindra Jadeja and debutant Harshit, backed up by Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill'sm fireworks with the bat, but they will be slightly worried about another star batter, Virat Kohli's fitness. Kohli missed the series opener due to a sore knee.

"That’s why the question of whether Virat Kohli will be fit in time is crucial, because having the top three play together in these two matches before the big tournament is very important," said Raina.

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