Ind vs Aus: Nobody Knows Who Asked Rohit To Head To NCA, Says BCCI Official

In the new chapter of the Rohit Sharma selection controversy, a BCCI official has said that nobody knows why the Indian opener went to NCA before the series. 

According to the source, the Indian opener was expected to fly with the team on November 12 post the IPL 2020 final but instead, he headed to the National Cricket Academy(NCA). 

"Nobody in the BCCI knows who asked Rohit to head to the NCA. Was it his own decision? The Onus is now on the NCA to take a call," said the official talking to the Times of India. 

He further added that the confusion and the lack of communication have dented the team's preparation ahead of the series. 

"Whatever the confusion, it has dented the team's preparations. Virat has to return because it's personal and very important. Rohit had done the same on the previous test(tour) of Australia. It's unfortunate that the team will suffer for lack of communication," the official said. 

The right-hand opening batsman fitness assessment is scheduled for December 11, and only then it can be decided if he has gained test match fitness or not. 

"But the problem is that there's a 14-day mandatory state quarantine in Australia. Even if he is allowed to travel on the 12th, how will he fly? There are no commercial flights. And even if he manages to fly, he has to undergo the two-week solitary quarantine. We all knew he was never going to fly," said the source. 

Talking about the case of Ishant Sharma, the BCCI official said that the decision was taken a month ago when the NCA director Rahul Dravid wrote to BCCI that "Ishant will require close to four weeks to be fit and another three weeks to train before he can retain match fitness." It conveyed that he won't be fully fit until December 17.  

"But then he had to undergo a 14-day quarantine. What's the point? By the time he regains any sanity, three tests will be over. Does the team really need this?" the official said. 

The Indian team will be starting their Australia tour on 27th November, Friday as the two teams will meet for the first One Day International(ODI) in Sydney.