Rohit Sharma managed 31 runs in five innings, while Virat Kohli aggregated 190 runs in nine innings, despite scoring a century in the series opener in Perth. The duo’s failures were the main reason India did not consistently post more than 200 runs.

Rohit found different ways of getting out, and his form was so poor that the Indian captain decided to “stand down” from the series decider in Sydney, paving the way for Jasprit Bumrah to lead the side.

On the other hand, Virat Kohli was dismissed in the same fashion. He got out eight teams in trying to chase wide deliveries.

“If there’s a gap for them, I think they should go back and play some domestic cricket and see how it is. Because when you play Test match cricket for that length of time, it’s important to play domestic cricket for two reasons: You’re abreast with the current generation (and) you can contribute to that younger generation with your experience,” Shastri told ICC Review.

“And more importantly, you get to play spin more than you will ever play. So if you see India as recorded, India on turning tracks is not the greatest. If you have quality spinners in the opposition, they can trouble you. And they have troubled India,” he added.

The next round of the Ranji Trophy begins on January 23, and it needs to be seen whether Rohit and Kohli make themselves available for Mumbai and Delhi, respectively.

‘It’s the hunger and desire’

Ravi Shastri also stated that it all depends on Virat Kohli’s and Rohit Sharma’s hunger and desire. The former India coach also reckons that playing domestic cricket would help the duo face spinners on turning tracks.

Recently, New Zealand had white-washed India 3-0 at home. With losses against Kiwis and Australia, India have failed to qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) for the very first time.

“They might have been lucky to get over a couple of series, but you saw how New Zealand exposed them before coming to Australia. So I would leave it on that,” Shastri said.

“And plus, it’s the hunger and desire. When you’re in your 30s, one is 36, the other is 38. They would know how hungry they are,” he added.

Shastri also reckons that there is still room for Virat Kohli to contribute to Indian cricket, as he can help groom the youngsters.

“So I think the contributing factor to this team is transition and the youngsters coming through the ranks. If you look at Jaiswal, he’s 23. You look at Shubham Gill is 22, 23 [25 years]. Nitish Reddy is 21,” said Shastri.

“There are a lot of players. Rishabh Pant, he is still very young. He is 25 or 26. [27 years]. So there are a lot of guys there who can benefit from the experience of a player of Virat Kohli’s calibre,” he added.