Rohit should take a break and keep himself fit for the WTC Final, says Gavaskar

India batting great Sunil Gavaskar has suggested that Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma should take a break from the Indian Premier League and focus on preparations for next month’s World Test Championship Final instead.
Yesterday, against Chennai Super Kings at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium, Sharma, who had scored a three-ball duck in his previous game against Punjab Kings at Mohali, batted at number three, with Australia all-rounder Cameron Green opening the batting with Ishan Kishan.
But the plan backfired spectacularly as Green fell in the second over, while Kishan was dismissed in the third over. Rohit Sharma did not last long at number three, offering a simple catch to Ravindra Jadeja at backward point while trying to play a lap shot against Deepak Chahar.
In 10 matches of IPL 2023, Sharma has scored just 184 runs at an average of 18.40 and strike-rate of 126.90, with a highest score of 65 against Delhi Capitals last month. Through the duck in Chennai, Rohit now has the most number of zeroes by a batter in the tournament’s history.
“I would say that Rohit should maybe take a break for the time being, and keep himself fit for the World Test Championship Final. He can come back again for the last few matches, but right now, (he should) take a little bit of a breather himself,” Gavaskar said.
Ireland pacer Little takes IPL break for Bangladesh series
Ireland pacer Josh Little will miss the next few Indian Premier League matches for defending champions Gujarat Titans after flying home for national duty, the Indian franchisee said. Little, 23, has been named in Ireland’s squad for the three-match one-day international series against Bangladesh in Chelmsford, England, starting on May 9.
Little travelled home following Gujarat’s match against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur on Friday. The bowler took one wicket while giving away 24 runs off his four overs as Gujarat thumped Rajasthan by nine wickets. “We wish Josh the best as he heads back to represent Ireland in the ODIs,” said Gujarat cricket director Vikram Solanki.
Solanki said the team looked forward to welcoming him back once he finished the ODI series. Little will travel back to India to join the Titans after the third ODI against Bangladesh on May 14. Gujarat are currently on top of the points table in India’s domestic Twenty20 competition. They take on Lucknow Super Giants today in their next outing.
Meanwhile, Paul Stirling has been included in Ireland’s 15-man squad for their one-off Test against England at Lord’s next month, completing a U-turn on his decision to skip Ireland’s red-ball commitments this year.
Stirling held discussions with Cricket Ireland at the end of last year in which it was agreed that he would sit out of their Test fixtures in 2023 in a bid to manage his workload. But after Ireland’s two scheduled ODIs in Sri Lanka last month were converted into a second Test, Stirling returned to red-ball cricket and made his maiden Test hundred in Galle. He has now been included in their squad for the Lord’s Test, which starts on June 1. Stirling spent a decade calling Lord’s home when he was a Middlesex player, and featured in Ireland’s defeat there in 2019. Ireland will play a first-class, three-day warm-up match against Essex from May 26-28, and Stirling’s involvement in that will, bizarrely, depend on Bangalore’s progress in the IPL.