"You can be patient with someone like Rohit Sharma" - Tom Moody on Mumbai Indians captain amid his poor form

Former Australian all-rounder Tom Moody reckons it is worth backing Rohit Sharma despite his poor form in IPL 2023. The former Sunrisers Hyderabad head coach believes Rohit brings plenty of value as captain, not only as a batter.

The Mumbai Indians skipper is in poor form this season, registering 184 in nine innings, including a duck against the Punjab Kings on Wednesday in Mohali. The right-hander also registered two single-figure scores before that.

Speaking to the official broadcaster, Moody believes that Ishan Kishan has returned to form, given his 41-ball 75 against the Punjab Kings. Despite his low scores, the South Australian feels Mumbai can persevere with Rohit due to their batting depth.

"It is a concern, but I suppose from Mumbai Indians point of view, Ishan Kishan, that was another concern leading into this game (PBKS vs MI). Both openers have been short of runs. That’s ticked off, he looks like he is up and running and flying. The next one is Rohit Sharma. When you have batting depth of quality, that MI have, you can be patient with someone like Rohit Sharma because of the value that he brings to the table as captain."

Kishan, who had been finding his feet, top-scored with 75, compiled with seven fours and four sixes. The left-hander added 116 with Suryakumar Yadav as the five-time champions shot down 214 with seven balls to spare.

"He is a multiple championship-winning captain" - Tom Moody

Tom Moody. (Image Credits: Twitter)

Moody feels Rohit's value is similar to MS Dhoni's in the playing eleven, explaining:

"You look at the value that MS Dhoni has had for CSK. He has only had a couple of impacts with the bat and that’s purely because he is sitting back in the batting order. There is more to Rohit Sharma than the batsman. It’s the leader, it’s the calm and successful mind. He is a multiple championship-winning captain."

With their six-wicket win over the Punjab Kings, Mumbai Indians surged to sixth place on the table. The race to the playoffs is getting heated, with the top seven teams in close proximity to each other in terms of points.