'You have invited him, so you will behave politely' - Irfan Pathan breaks silence on Rohit Sharma interview row during 2025 Sydney Test
"When Rohit came to interview, we were, of course, polite, and we had to show that, because he was our guest," Irfan Pathan said.
2 Min Read
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has revealed inside details of Rohit Sharma's popular interview at the Sydney Cricket Ground during the fifth and final Test match in the Border-Gavaskar series 2024-25. Rohit, the then Test captain had dropped himself from the Sydney Test owing to abysmal form.
Rohit, who had also missed the series-opener as he was on paternity leave, scored just 31 runs from the three Tests he played during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. His worrisome average of 6.20, the lowest ever by a touring captain in Australia (minimum five innings), escalated talks of his omission from the series finale as India were looking to draw level.
Irfan, who had interviewed Rohit in Sydney, revealed that the broadcasters were forced to have the then India captain's back, despite his long-standing struggles in the longest format of the game. The cricketer-turned-expert admitted that had Rohit not been the skipper of the Asian giants, he would've been left out from the playing XI by the team management.
"Rohit Sharma is an amazing player in white-ball cricket, but his average in Test cricket that year was 6, so we said that if he was not the captain, he would not have had a place in the team, and this is true," Pathan said in a snippet shared by Lallantop.
"People say that we supported Rohit Sharma more than necessary. Of course, when someone comes to interview on your broadcasting channel, you will not misbehave with them, right? You have invited him, so you will behave politely. When Rohit came to interview, we were, of course, polite, and we had to show that, because he was our guest. So that was connected and said we were supporting him, but it was we who said...we had said that he should keep fighting, but that said, he should not have had a place in the playing XI. If he was not the captain of the team, he would have been dropped," he added.
R Ashwin explains why Samson's trade to CSK might not work
This turned out to be Rohit's final Test tour. He announced his retirement from the red-ball format on May 7, finishing with 4301 runs from 67 Tests at an average of 40.58. The Mumbai batter has 12 Test centuries and 18 fifties to his name.
Get every cricket updates! Follow Us:
Download Our App