Rohit lacking 'fire in the belly', feels ex-India cricketer amid another dip in form: 'He seems to be a bit disinterested'

Rohit Sharma’s personal form has largely reflected Mumbai Indians’ fortunes in the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The Hitman has struggled to make an impact in the first few matches as well as in MI’s last three games while scoring three fifties in four outings during his team’s winning spree in the middle of the season.

Rohit had shown signs of regaining his form with a quickfire 26 against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Wankhede Stadium on 17 April and would smash 70 against the same team, this time in their backyard a week later, with the two knocks separated by an unbeaten 76 against Chennai Super Kings at home.

Rohit would also contribute in MI’s 100-run thrashing of Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur with a knock of 53 off 36, sharing a 116-run opening stand with Ryan Rickelton – with whom he has formed a successful pairing with this season.

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The former MI captain, however, has collected just 36 runs in his last three outings at a strike rate slightly above 100, with MI also losing two out of three games during this period. And the fact that this development comes right before the Hardik Pandya-led side face Gujarat Titans in the Eliminator has set off alarm bells in the MI camp as well as among experts and the franchise’s fans.

Rohit is lacking the motivation to produce his best, feels Atul Wassan

Former India cricketer Atul Wassan for one feels lack of motivation is the reason why Rohit has been far from his best, especially on either ends of the league phase.

“He seems to be a bit disinterested; the motivation, the fire in the belly, has satiated. He has won almost everything, from winning the T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy to retiring from Test cricket. Hence, to motivate yourself to play at this level of cricket every day is a very tough task,” Wassan said on Bails and Banter on the OTTplay app.

Rohit had retired from Twenty20 Internationals last year after guiding India to their second T20 World Cup title and had also called it quits in Test cricket earlier this month, right before India’s upcoming tour of England. The 38-year-old had also led India to their third Champions Trophy title earlier this year, scoring a match-winning 76 in the final against New Zealand on 9 March.

His lack of contributions in the ongoing IPL, however, certainly has added to the pressure on his MI teammates, including the in-form Suryakumar Yadav who has been left with the task of having to rescue the team out of troubled waters and scoring the bulk of runs.

Rohit, who had been retained for Rs 16.3 crore ahead of the mega auction last year, will have to find a way to let his bat do the talking once again in the most crucial phase of them all – the playoffs, which get underway on Thursday.

MI failed to secure a top-two finish after losing to Punjab Kings by seven wickets in their final league match on Monday, and cannot afford any more slip-ups if they are to end a five-year title drought over the course of the next one week.