India captain Rohit Sharma's availability for the first Test of the coming Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) is still uncertain, but Australia have their plans in place to "torpedo" him whenever he comes out to open during India's tour, says former leg-spinner Kerry O'Keeffe.
Rohit has had a forgettable time lately in Test cricket, scoring just 133 runs in 10 innings at home leading up to the BGT. And while he will be satisfied with the 2-0 sweep against Bangladesh, Rohit admitted not being at his best as a captain during the embarrassing 0-3 whitewash against New Zealand.
The Aussie pace battery of Michael Starc, captain Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood will, therefore, try to put Rohit under pressure, as have been Australia's tactics historically against the visiting captains.
"Rohit Sharma may miss one or two Tests, but he is the captain, and Australia always tries to torpedo the visiting captain. It's been a tactic they've used forever, and I think they'll go very hard at Rohit Sharma," O'Keeffe told foxsports.com.au.
Along with Rohit, India's other premier batsman, Virat Kohli, has been feeling the heat for a while because of his extended lean patch. In six Tests matches Kohli has played so far in 2024, he has scored just 250 runs in 12 innings at an average of 22.72, including a solitary half-century.
O'Keeffe believes Australia should remain wary of the batsman in Kohli, who has been a thorn in the flesh for the Aussies over the years. He said Kohli's form could be one of the decisive factors of this BGT.
"Kohli, who has worried them (Australia) over the years, what a stunning player he's been; but in sport, if you sense that the king of the jungle is slightly weaker, you poke a bit of cheek at him. I'm fascinated to see what Virat Kohli ends up with at the end of the summer. It could be the decisive point in the whole summer," he said.
"If he has an absolutely blazing series, India could win."
The first Test begins on November 22 in Perth.
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