Will Rohit play? India decline to confirm final XI

India coach Gautam Gambhir declined to confirm that captain Rohit Sharma would play the fifth Test against Australia, committing only to naming the team before the toss today.
Skipper Rohit has struggled for runs in the first four tests of the five-match series, which India trail 2-1 after a loss in Melbourne earlier this week.
Asked on Thursday why the coach was taking the pre-match conference rather than the captain as is usual, Gambhir bridled.
“Everything is fine with Rohit and I don’t think it’s anything traditional,” he told reporters at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
“The head coach is here, that should be fine, that should be good enough. We’re going to have a look at the wicket and finalise (our team) tomorrow.”
When asked specifically whether Rohit would be in that team, Gambhir was non-committal.
“As I just said, we’re going to have a look at the wicket and probably announce the playing XI tomorrow. So the answer remains the same.”
At the end of the Brisbane Test, Rohit had admitted that while he wasn’t batting well, he was still ticking all the boxes that he needed to.
“As long as my mind, my body, my feet are moving well, I am pretty happy with how things are panning out for me,” Rohit had said two weeks ago. “Sometimes those numbers can tell you that it’s been a while since he has got big runs. But for a person like me, I think it’s all about how I feel in my mind.
“As a batter as well, a lot of the things that I am trying to do is not falling in the place that I would want to,” Rohit said after India went 2-1 down in the series. “But mentally, it is disturbing without a doubt.”
Gambhir did confirm that pace bowler Akash Deep was out of the match with a back issue and denied media reports that he had read the riot act to his team after the loss in Melbourne.
“Those are just reports,” he said. “That’s not the truth, and I don’t think I need to answer to any reports. “There were some honest words, that’s all I can say. Honesty is extremely important if you want to probably go on to do great things.”
Gambhir spoke repeatedly about the importance of honesty within the dressing room but said no specific discussions had been held with Rohit and his predecessor as captain Virat Kohli about their roles in the future of the Indian team.
“The only conversation was how we can win the next Test match,” he said. “No other conversation has taken place, because we know how important this Test is. It’s the team-first ideology that matters,” Gambhir said. “It’s a team sport and you’ve got to play what the team needs you to do. That’s as simple as it can get. People can play the natural game. But still, in a team sport, individuals only contribute. It’s the team (that is important). If you need to play in a certain way, I think you’ve got to do it.
“I don’t want to talk about individuals. I think everyone knows where they are. And as I just mentioned, in a team sport, it’s only the team.
“You have to expect players to do what the team needs you to do. Whether they go to bad sessions, whether they go to be attacking, because that is all that matters in a team sport for me.”