'When Rohit Sharma came...': Irfan Pathan reveals shocking details of BGT interview; 'he didn't deserve spot in 11'

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has disclosed shocking details of his interview with Rohit Sharma after the former Test skipper chose to "opt out" of the series finale of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Sydney. Pathan said they were obliged to support Rohit despite his low scores in the recent Test outings then.

In a teaser video shared by Lallantop on Wednesday, Pathan praised Rohit's skill in the white-ball format but drew attention to his dismal Test run. The 37-year-old only managed 164 runs in eight Tests against Australia, New Zealand, and Bangladesh last year, which featured just one half-century. Rohit had an average of 6.20 in the three matches he played in Australia, which is the lowest ever by a visiting skipper on Australia soil (minimum five innings).

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Pathan emphasised that Rohit would have probably been benched after such performances if he hadn't been captain. “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,” noted the ex-India all-rounder in the teaser.

Rohit was left out of the Sydney clash due to growing criticism and concerns about his future in Test cricket. In an interview, Rohit emphasized that he had willingly "opted out", despite many speculating that he had been dropped.