Rohit Sharma's return to Ranji Trophy after 10 years lasted only 18 balls as the India captain managed just three runs after Ajinkya Rahane-led Mumbai opted to bat first against Jammu and Kashmir at the BKC ground on Thursday. The last time Rohit played a Ranji Trophy game was back in 2015.
Following his poor run with the bat for India in the Test series against New Zealand and Australia, Rohit's decision to play for Mumbai came after BCCI made it mandatory for all the players to play domestic cricket when not on national duty, in an attempt to keep all the players in form.
Opening the innings with Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit started on a cautious note, trying to settle in the middle against the new ball. The right-hander patiently negated Jammu and Kashmir bowlers Auqib Nabi Dar and Umar Nazir Mir, who were bowling tight lengths.
However, Rohit was undone by a rising delivery from Mir which he tried to play on the leg side by going on the backfoot. The ball hit the side of the bat for a leading edge only to be caught by opposition captain Paras Dogra, much to the disappointment of fans.
In fact, in a video that is circulating in social media, fans were actually seen leaving the ground after Rohit's dismissal. Earlier, Jaiswal was also trapped LBW for just five runs off eight balls.
The India skipper will get one more chance to redeem himself in the second innings, if Mumbai get to bat for the second time. With Rohit next be playing in the ODI series against England, starting on February 6, it is unclear if Rohit will play Mumbai's next Ranji Trophy game against Meghalaya.
Jammu and Kashmir: Shubham Khajuria, Vivrant Sharma, Abdul Samad, Paras Dogra(c), Kanhaiya Wadhawan(w), Auqib Nabi Dar, Yawer Hassan, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Abid Mushtaq, Umar Nazir Mir, Vanshaj Sharma
Mumbai: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane(c), Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Tamore(w), Shivam Dube, Shardul Thakur, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Mohit Avasthi, Karsh Kothari
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