5 features of Rohit Sharma School of Nonsensical Captaincy

Yet another defeat! Just when it seemed that Mumbai Indians were finding their feet at the Wankhede, their home ground, they were totally outclassed by a clinical Chennai Super Kings outfit. Rohit Sharma, the Mumbai skipper, was hailed by one and all for his proactive and shrewd captaincy in the previous season. This season, however, has turned out to be a different story altogether. In yesterday’s game against CSK, it was the shoddy decision-making skills from the skipper and, to an extent, the team think tank that cost them the game, more than anything else. Let’s have a look at a few blunders of his that didn’t augur well for his side.

#1 The batting order enigma

Lendl Simmons shouldn’t have been picked as a replacement for the injured Jalaj Saxena in the first place. Averaging 23.18 in Twenty20 matches before yesterday’s game, Simmons’ strike-rate stands at an ordinary 109. These numbers don’t inspire enough confidence to overlook the likes of Martin Guptill and Luke Ronchi, who were available in the same price bracket (below Rs. 90,00,000).

That said, in the post-match interview, Rohit talked about his will to anchor the innings batting at No. 4. In the T20 format, how can you be anchoring the innings batting at No. 4? I believe it is a slot that should be occupied by a batsman who can explode at will, someone like Kieron Pollard.

Coming in to bat during the 12th over with the score standing at 78-2, Rohit scored a run-a-ball knock of 19 in a bid to anchor the innings till the end. He could manage just one boundary during his stay at the crease, which lasted till the 18th over. In that case, what should we make of the run-a-ball knock of 38 from Simmons, opening the innings?

Just imagine what would have been the outcome had Pollard come in to bat in the 12th over. History stands testimony to the fact that the West Indian big hitter tends to be at his best when provided with time to get his eye in. This makes for a case for Rohit to open, thereby enabling Pollard to bat no lower than No. 4.

Delhi Daredevils are paying the price for a very similar tactical mess. And Mumbai, so far, have been intent on following suit.

#2 Can Lasith Malinga prevent the unpreventable?

There was no way Mumbai Indians were going to restrict the powerpacked CSK batting line-up to below 157 on a slow pitch, more so with only one frontline spinning option in Harbhajan Singh. Rohit has, all through the tournament, been thinking otherwise; therefore, Malinga’s ability to swing the ball early on is being shunned only to have an insurance at the death.

Such defensive tactics are effective only when you have a total of about 170+ on the board and not a meagre 150 odd. Rohit, or any captain for that matter, should capitalize on the tentativeness of Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum against the new, swinging cherry. Allowing them to get set is always a self-destructive ploy.

Yes, I agree that Praveen Kumar was troubling the duo upfront with his wiliness. Did he get the early breakthroughs, though? He got one, but that wasn't enough. Instead of blocking the breathing space for the batsmen by attacking with Malinga from the other end, Rohit eases things for the opposition by bringing in Jasprit Bumrah, an inexperienced medium-pacer who doesn’t put to test a batter’s technique: a fruitless gambit, I would say.

#3 Why no Pragyan Ojha?

Rohit Sharma, a cricketer who has grown up playing in Mumbai, and the horde of experienced support staff at his disposal couldn’t gauge how the pitch there would possibly behave. CSK bowled 12 overs of spin, which accounted for 4 wickets, while Rohit had only one tweaker to work with. As a result, the opposition batsmen played him out, knowing the fact that the weaker links of Mumbai's bowling attack could be exploited later.

#4 Don\'t kid yourself into thinking Pollard can be your 5th bowler

Pollard the T20 bowler, to be very honest, seems incompetent to bowl at this level. His skills are too limited to be banking on him at the crucial moments of the game. The only length that I’ve seen him bowling is the good length: easy meat for any T20 bat. Gently clocking 125 odd clicks, him banging the ball short doesn’t bother the batsmen anyway.

Considering the stated facts, it was imprudent on the part of his skipper to ask him to defend 11 runs in the final over against MS Dhoni. His figures of 1-28 in his previous two overs further strengthen the argument. Corey Anderson, perhaps, would have been a slightly better option with his pace and the ability to bowl the occasional yorkers.

Stocking up the batting order with specialist batsmen deep till No. 7 makes little sense when your 5th bowler concedes over 10 an over in every game, literally. Instead, dropping Aditya Tare for Pragyan Ojha would be a wise option.

#5 Why express your frustrations after all is done and dusted?

After Dhoni hit the winning four, Rohit Sharma was seen throwing his towel in the air and kicking the same with his foot. If that wasn’t enough, he hurled a few expletives, as well. Now, many would wonder as to how does it matter at the end of the day? Well, it sends a wrong message to the dressing room, especially the young players attempting to grasp everything they can from the seasoned pros.

His anger, more than disappointment, suggested that Mumbai deserved a win all along but was unfairly deprived of one. I know that it is not the ideal stage of the tournament to have a sage talk, as every team is desperate to make it to the playoffs, but, in the midst of all the passion, the ‘Spirit of the game’ has been disregarded far too often for anyone’s liking.