Former England skipper Michael Atherton recently gave a shocking take on Rohit Sharma‘s sudden retirement from Test cricket. The Indian skipper called-time on his Test career ahead of the upcoming five-match series against England in June. Taking to social media, Rohit announced his decision and also stated that he will continue to play in ODIs for India. Rohit’s decision came amid the reports which suggested that the selectors were not going to appoint him as the captain in Tests against England.

There has been a significant dip in Rohit’s form in the recent years and India’s loss against Australia in the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy, only added pressure on his shoulders. Atherton stated that though Rohit’s retirement came out of nowhere, he must have got the hint that his position in the team is not certain.

“Was that retirement completely his own decision, or did he get a sense that he’s about to be pushed or the axe was coming because there was a report, the day before the announcement from Rohit, that the selectors had decided to move on?” Atherton said while speaking on Sky Sports.

“So that’s speculation, we don’t know, but ultimately the decision didn’t come as a surprise because it’s a bad combination for any captain, as you know and as I know well if you’re losing games and you ain’t getting any runs and India had lost 5 out of the last 6 matches under Rohit’s captaincy,” he added.

Rohit decided to hang his boots after playing 67 Tests and scoring 4301 runs for India. This include 18 half-centuries and 12 centuries, at an average of 40.58.

“I think people will look at him, and his best format is ODIs. He’s going to go down as one of the greatest ODI openers, isn’t he? But a funny Test career,” said Atherton.

“He had to wait for a long time to get in and then almost a career of two halves in Tests, averaging just a tick over 40 in the end with a dozen hundreds means it’s a successful record, but not quite a stellar record,” he added.