Indian captain Rohit Sharma should continue batting in the middle-order in the Brisbane Test, said his former teammate Cheteshwar Pujara. Speaking ahead of the IND vs AUS 3rd Test, that will be played on December 14, Pujara stated that Rohit should be sacrificing his batting position for the future of Indian cricket. (Full BGT Coverage | More Cricket News)

Sharma, who missed the 1st Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, had a terrible Test in Adelaide in the pink ball match, scoring 9 runs across two innings. The 37-year-old was troubled by the Aussie pacers, especially the likes of Pat Cummins and Scott Boland.

Speaking to Star Sports, former India cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara spoke on Rohit Sharma’s captaincy and form. He said “My thoughts on Rohit Sharma as a captain and as a player. First of all, I would like Rohit Sharma to come back to form as soon as possible. Because when he scores runs, it will affect his captaincy as well. When a captain is out of form, it affects his captaincy as well. So, I think when scores runs, it will affect his captaincy.

"Rohit Sharma is an experienced player. He knows how to score runs when batting. He is going through some bad form. But even there, a start is very important for him. He should focus on getting his first 20 or 30 runs steadily. After that, he can capitalize on the start and convert it into a big score. So, hopefully, when he comes in the first half or quarter of an hour, he should focus on getting a start.”

Talking of the 1st Test, KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal starred with the bat in Perth, as India registered a massive 295-run win. However, the hosts bounced back in Adelaide, notching a 10-wicket victory, with the match getting over within three days.

Pujara stated that Rohit should sacrifice his batting position for the future of Indian cricket. "The stump line has been troubling him a lot. He has been getting out bowled and LBW, which is a bit of concern for him. That's the line he will have to work on in the nets, because in the balls outside off stump, he is looking more comfortable. I think he should continue to bat at No.6. We are looking at India's future, KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal. They batted really well in the 1st Test match, Shubman also is likely to bat at No.3. We should think about the long term and that's why I think that Rohit should continue to bat at No.6," he further added.

The third Test match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series will be played at the iconic Gabba Stadium with the game starting on 5:50 AM IST on 14 December, Saturday.