Mumbai, Jan 14: India captain Rohit Sharma has joined Mumbai's squad for training sessions ahead of the second phase of the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy, which begins on January 23.

The team held a two-hour center-wicket practice session at Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday and is set to continue training throughout the week in preparation for their sixth-round home match against Jammu and Kashmir.

Rohit had a struggling run with the bat in India's 1-3 loss at the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series against Australia. India not only failed to retain the trophy for the first time in a decade but also lost a third consecutive spot in the World Test Championship final.

Rohit, who missed the first Test of the series due to the birth of his second child, failed to score beyond 10 runs in the five innings before opting to rest in the fifth Test at Sydney Cricket Ground. He accumulated only 31 runs in the series and came under public scrutiny for his substandard outings.

Rohit's participation in Mumbai's upcoming Ranji game remains uncertain. However, his decision to train with the team, in consultation with head coach Omkar Salvi, indicates a potential availability for at least one of the two remaining fixtures. The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) is expected to announce the squad later this week.

Dinesh Lad, Rohit's childhood coach, also advised the opening batter to play domestic matches to return to form in red-ball cricket.

"I think Rohit has only two goals - first to win the World Test Championship and second to win the ODI World Cup. If he wanted he should have retired from all formats (after T20 World Cup title) but he only retired from T20 cricket. He is not the only cricketer who was struggling to score runs. He should play one or two domestic games to prepare for Test matches," Lad had told IANS.

"Because of T20 cricket, the mindset of batters has changed. He is a technically sound cricketer, and against England last year he was scoring good runs. If we win, people call Rohit the best captain, but when we lose people say he doesn't know captaincy," the Dronacharya awardee added.

Following the SCG Test, India head coach Gautam Gambhir emphasised the importance of Test players participating in domestic first-class cricket whenever possible. He also refrained from speculating on the Test futures of Rohit and Virat Kohli, with the latter also struggling to find his best form in recent times.

When asked about his thoughts on a long-term roadmap for the team in red-ball cricket and whether it was time to invest in youngsters, Gambhir had said, "Look, it's too early to talk about it. The series has just got over. I think we still have five more months to plan where we want to head towards. But it's not the right moment right now for me to talk about that. Where are we going to be after five months?

"A lot of things change in sport. Forms change. People change. Attitude change. Everything changes in sport. And we all know that five months is a long time. So, let's see before the (England) series what's going to happen. But whatever will happen, will happen for the best interest of Indian cricket."

Defending Ranji Trophy champions Mumbai are well-positioned to secure a spot in the knockouts. They are currently sitting third in Group A with three wins from five matches, trailing second-placed Jammu and Kashmir by just one point.

(IANS)

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