Rohit Sharma provides update on availability for opening Test against Australia; practice match called off

In the event that Rohit is unable to play in the series opener against Australia, it is likely that Jasprit Bumrah will be chosen to captain the team.

When Rohit Sharma was asked about his availability for the first Test against Australia in Perth, Rohit Sharma said, "Right now, I am not too sure whether I'll be going, but let's see. Fingers crossed."

Speaking on JioCinema, former cricketer Abhinav Mukund also confirmed the rumours of Rohit Sharma expecting his second child with wife Ritika Sajdeh. He also said that this might be reason behind Rohit possibly missing the opening Test against Australia.

Rohit Sharma has also confirmed that the practice match against India A has been cancelled and now the three-day window at the WACA will now be utilised for the centre-pitch match simulation.

“Rather than practice match, we have planned a match simulation kind of thing with India A. When you play that practice match, we are travelling with a squad of 19 players, and it was just three days allotted to us. And I don't know how much workload we can do in those three days in terms of getting everyone prepared," said Rohit.

“We as a management think that in match simulation, the batters can spend enough time in the middle and the bowlers can bowl a lot of balls. That is something we feel more comfortable doing as a team rather than playing practice match,” he added.

Speaking about the upcoming five-match series against Australia, Rohit Sharma said, "Lot of our guys have been there before and lots of guys haven't been there before. That is why we are trying to go there early, and get used to the conditions and Australia is not an easy place to play cricket. But we can take a lot of confidence from how we played in Australia in the last two series. We will think positively, I am not going to look beyond Australia series. It is now an important series for us."

"It will be a good challenge for guys who have been there and also for the guys who are going there for the first time. Right now, it is about understanding what we didn't do right. Mistakes need to be addressed. When you land in Australia, it is important to break down those five Tests, and focus on one Test at a time," he added.

India will now head to Australia on the back of an embarrassing 3-0 series loss against New Zealand at home. The five Tests will be played in Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.

Rohit Sharma and co lost the third and final Test at the Wankhede Stadium by 25 runs.

The hosts were unable to chase down 147, and they were bundled out for 121 in the final innings as Ajaz Patel took a six-wicket haul.

India now face an uphill task in their bid to make the World Test Championship (WTC) final. The side now cannot afford another loss, and they must defeat Australia 4-0 or 5-0, to make the final, without depending on other results.