India captain Rohit Sharma will miss the final Test against Australia in Sydney after poor form with the bat.

The 37-year-old has scored just 31 runs in five innings of the series at an average of 6.20, while his average in his last eight games is a paltry 10.93, with him scoring a best of 23 against Bangladesh in September.

Stand-in captain Jasprit Bumrah insisted that Rohit had chosen to “rest” and said after winning the toss and opting to bat: “Our captain has shown leadership.”

“This shows that there is a lot of unity in this team. There is no selfishness. Whatever is in the best interest of the team, we want to do that.”

There have been rumors that Rohit – who was replaced by Shubman Gill in the eleven – might announce his retirement from Test cricket, although he has not spoken publicly about it yet.

India are 2-1 down and need a win at the SCG to secure a series draw and stay in the race to face South Africa in the June World Test Championship final at Lord’s.

A win for Australia in Sydney will give Pat Cummins’ side a game against the Proteas.

India won the opening Test in Perth by 295 runs with Bumrah in charge while Rohit was on paternity leave, but then lost the second Test in Adelaide by 10 wickets before a rain-affected draw in Brisbane was followed by a 184-run win for Australia in Melbourne.

Rohit has captained India in 24 Tests since taking over from Virat Kohli in 2022, winning 12, losing nine and drawing three.

The right-hander announced his retirement from international T20 cricket after India won the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean in June following a seven-run win over South Africa in the final.

Indian off-spinner Ravichandan Ashwin retired from all international cricket after the third Test against Australia in Brisbane.