Regular Team India captain Rohit Sharma won't be a part of the T20I series against South Africa which kicks off with a game in New Delhi on Thursday, but one man is quite unhappy about his decision of skipping all five games against the Proteas. He is none other than MS Dhoni's “close friend” and former fast bowler of the Indian cricket team – RP Singh.

Almost all the senior players, including Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Jasprit Bumrah have been rested for the home series against the South Africans after the BCCI chose to give them a break to manage their workload.

But Rohit Sharma's absence from the Indian team hasn't gone down well with RP Singh as he believes that the Mumbai-born batter should have played in the series, considering he was woefully out of touch in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

It was a forgettable season for both Rohit Sharma and the Mumbai Indians as the five-time IPL champions lost their first eight matches in the competition and failed to qualify for the playoffs. Even worse, they finished at the bottom of the table in the ten-team event.

On the other hand, Rohit Sharma struggled to get going as he managed to make only 268 runs at an average of 19.14 in 14 games. Rohit's nightmarish run in the league can be understood by the fact that he failed to register even one fifty in the tournament. His highest score was 48.

“I think he should have played the series. Taking rest or not is his personal thought. It depends on how much fatigue he is experiencing. But I don’t think there was a need for a break. He should have played. It's a long series and, remember, he is the captain as well,” RP Singh said in an interview with India TV.

RP Singh, who was a member of the Deccan Chargers (now SunRisers Hyderabad) during his prime, stated that while Rohit Sharma used to find his groove back rather quickly, his run in the IPL signalled otherwise as he looked completely out of sorts throughout the entire tourney.

“In the IPL, Rohit hasn't scored over 400 runs in the last few seasons. There are many others who have crossed the 400-run mark. His performances have been inconsistent in the tournament but he used to come up with a couple of match-winning knocks. Yes, Rohit's form is a headache. He is an established player, and that makes it a much bigger problem. ” Singh added.

“I think age and fitness have a big role to play in this. Reflexes do take a hit with age and fitness. It's difficult to make a comeback at 36. You are expected to dominate when you are a senior player. If he gets out now, it'll be difficult for him to get back.,” the former India pacer concluded.

RP Singh is a retired left-arm quick bowler, who made his debut for the national cricket team in 2005.

Known to have the ability to swing the ball even in sub-continent conditions, RP Singh finished his career with 40 wickets in 14 Tests, and 69 scalps in 58 ODIs.

However, he's best remembered for his figures of 5/59 at the 2007 Lord's Test, his first five-wicket haul in the longest format of the game. He retired from all forms of cricket in 2009.

Yet it is RP Singh's friendship with legendary India captain MS Dhoni that defined his career as pundits often alleged that his proximity with the Ranchi-born cricketer benefited him several times. A case in point was his selection in the fourth Test of the 2011 series in England.

With RP Singh bowling at a speed of 120 kmph, the likes of Sunil Gavaskar and Ian Botham slammed MS Dhoni for picking him in the playing XI as he wasn't fit to play the match.

But RP Singh denied such a thing ever happened in an interview in 2020.

“We [Dhoni and I] had a discussion about where I could improve, what I can do to get better. I know MS Dhoni. Friendship is a different thing, but leading the country is different altogether. At that moment, I think he pushed the ones who he thought were better. I think he pushed people whom he thought would follow the plans better,” RP Singh told Sports Tak.

“Whenever my performance dipped, I was directly sent to play domestic cricket. Sometimes, people tend to stay with the team even if their performance dips and get good quality practice. The moment you go to domestic cricket, you won’t get that quality competition,” he added.

“This is why MS Dhoni is MS Dhoni today. His unbiased opinions on cricket and decision-making. I didn't play as much as I should have because maybe my speed dipped and my swing dipped. Everything else is secondary. If I had improved then, I would have played more. But I am happy with whatever I achieved,” RP Singh concluded.