Rohit
Sharma should lead India’s test team against Australia in skipper Virat Kohli’s
absence and the upcoming series will be the perfect opportunity for him to
stake claim for captaincy in one of the white-ball formats, former Pakistan pacer
Shoaib Akhtar said.

There have
been growing calls for Sharma to replace Kohli as the skipper in the shorter
formats, given that he has led Mumbai Indians to five Indian Premier League
titles, clinching the latest of those earlier this month as well as captaining
India to Asia Cup glory in 2018.

Despite
Ajinkya Rahane being the vice-captain for Tests, Akhtar believes Sharma should
take over from Kohli after he departs following the first Test in Adelaide, having
been granted paternal leave to attend the birth of his first child.

“My take on it is pretty simple. From what I
know Virat is very keen to take the team forward. It all depends on how
fatigued he is feeling. He has been playing non-stop since 2010, has got 70
centuries and a mountain of runs under his belt,” Akhtar told PTI.

He believes
Kohli should hand over the captaincy role to Sharma in one of the shorter
formats, preferably in T20Is, if he is feeling fatigued.

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“I could
see the boredom on his face during the IPL, maybe it was because of the
bio-bubble situation, he seemed a bit stressed out. It all depends on how he
feels. Rohit has been ready for captaincy for a while,” Akhtar said.

The series
will also be the first where Sharma will feature as an opener in overseas condition
and will face a tremendous challenge in facing the likes of Pat Cummins,
Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.

“Rohit is
one of the greatest batsmen India has produced. Now he also understands the
real value of his talent. Australia will be his best chance to prove himself as
captain. He should grab it with both hands. He has the talent and ability to
lead the team. It will be a tough test for India and I would look for this kind
of situations as a player.”

“The whole
world would be looking at Rohit as captain and batsman. If he does well for
himself and the team, then there should be a debate about split captaincy.”

India won
their first-ever series in Australia in 2018 although, the visitors will face a tougher challenge
this time around with the absence of Kohli and the return of David Warner and
Steve Smith back in the Australian team.

“In my
opinion, India have the ability to win again. But if their middle order doesn’t
perform, I see them struggling. People will be watching this series with great
interest including myself.”

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“It takes
two-three innings to control that forward trigger movement in foreign
conditions. You can’t drive on the up and have to play close to the body. It
will be interesting to see how the pitches will be. The Aussies will come hard
at India that is for sure and won’t be giving easy balls to drive.”

Akhtar, who
has played 46 Tests and 163 ODIs for Pakistan, said Australia should prepare
fast, bouncy tracks for the series to help their pace attack. He also advised the
Indian team to match the body language of the Australians with the kind of
aggressive approach that has been a feature of their skipper Kohli’s game.