Melbourne: India captain Rohit Sharma backed Virat Kohli to overcome his problems with off-stump deliveries in Australia, saying on Tuesday that players of his caliber always find a way to succeed.
Kohli snapped a long run of poor form with an unbeaten century in the first Test in Perth, but has frequently chased balls wide of his stumps in the current five-match series, leading to his dismissal.
“The modern greats will find their own ways (to deal with this issue),” Rohit told reporters ahead of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne.
Rohit’s weaknesses in longer overs have been exposed in recent matches. The captain has managed scores of three, six and 10 since returning to the team for the second Test after the birth of his son.
His move to the middle order has not been enough to inspire confidence, but Rohit has not spoken much about the prospect of returning to the opening slot where he could be devastating.
“Let’s not worry about that. I think ‘Who’s hitting where?’ It’s something we need to figure out within ourselves, and it’s not something I have to discuss in every press conference.
“Whatever it takes for our team to do well or give us the best chance at success, we will try to do it.”
After winning the first Test by 295 runs, India suffered a 10-wicket defeat in Adelaide before fighting back to a draw in the rain-hit third match in Brisbane.
“The score is 1-1, I think it is a fair result,” Rohit added.
“Both teams have played solid cricket and these two Tests will be extremely important for both teams.
“We want to move to Melbourne and focus on what we can achieve here, get things right and play well.”
India have added Mumbai off-spinner Tanush Kotian to the squad for the last two Tests after seamer Mohammed Shami was ruled out due to a knee injury.