India's captain Rohit Sharma has withdrawn from the playing XI for the fifth and final Test match against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, which took place on Friday. Jasprit Bumrah has stepped in to lead the team at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Rohit has been replaced by Shubman Gill, who will take on the batting responsibilities at No. 3, while KL Rahul returns to the opening position.

Speculation regarding Rohit's status had been prevalent since the team's defeat in Melbourne, where his performance did not improve despite his return as an opener, prompting a reshuffle in an otherwise stable top-order lineup. An in-form KL Rahul was compelled to bat lower in the order, while Gill remained on the sidelines.

The rumors intensified on the eve of the match when Gautam Gambhir made a vague comment during a press conference, suggesting that the conditions at the SCG would influence the selection of the XI. Subsequently, Rohit was observed absent from the slip cordon, where Virat Kohli was stationed at first slip, during India's fielding practice in Sydney.

This marks the second occasion on which Bumrah has captained the Indian team in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series. Previously, in Perth, he led India to a significant victory while Rohit was unavailable due to the birth of his second child. Bumrah's first experience as a Test captain occurred during the rescheduled Test against England in Birmingham in 2022, where the team suffered a defeat, resulting in a loss of the series lead.

Rohit Sharma becomes first Indian captain to be dropped midway through a series

Rohit, facing intense scrutiny regarding his leadership and struggling with challenging pitch conditions that featured excessive bounce and seam movement, appears to be nearing a disappointing conclusion to his Test career. He has become the first Indian captain to be omitted from the team during an ongoing international series.

The 37-year-old faced significant criticism throughout the series, managing to accumulate only 31 runs over five innings, resulting in a dismal average of 6.20, the lowest recorded by a touring captain in Australia. This performance further compounded his already poor form in the format since September, during which he amassed a mere 164 runs across three series, including just one half-century and an average slightly above 10.

This incident marks the first occasion since 2014 that an international captain has faced such a situation, when Pakistan's Misbah-ul-Haq chose to drop himself from the third ODI against Australia, allowing Shahid Afridi to lead the team in his absence. In the same year, Sri Lanka's Dinesh Chandimal opted to miss the final three matches of the T20 World Cup, including the semi-final and final, with Lasith Malinga stepping in as the temporary captain.

The inaugural instance of a captain being dropped from the playing XI during an international series occurred during the 1974 Ashes, when England's Mike Denness withdrew from the fourth Test. However, he made a comeback in the subsequent match in Adelaide, where he scored a half-century and followed it with a commendable 181 in the final Test at the MCG, contributing to a victory for the tourists by an innings.

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