IND vs AUS: 'Absolutely unaware' - Rohit Sharma on Jai Shree Ram chants for Mohammed Shami in 4th Test

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India captain Rohit Sharma expressed surprised after a reporter asked for his reaction on Jai Shree Ram chants for Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj during the fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

A video which was widely circulated on social media has fans chanting 'Jai Shree Ram' in front of Shami and Siraj who are standing alongside other India cricketers near the boundary line. Towards the end of the video a fan can be clearly heard saying, "Shami, Jai Shree Ram." However, the player did not pay heed to the comment and went past the heckling fans without even looking at them.

A surprised and confused Rohit has stated that he was completely unaware of the incident.

“I am absolutely unaware of Jai Shri Ram chants for Shami. I just heard it for the first time. I don’t know what has happened there,” Rohit said in the post-match press conference.

The fourth Test ended in a high-scoring draw as India won the Border-Gavaskar Trophy by a 2-1 margin. The series win India's fourth consecutive against India. Shami finished the series as the leading wicket-taker among pacers. He picked nine wickets in three matches at an average of 28.22. Overall, he is the fifth-highest wicket-taker in the just concluded series.

IND vs AUS: Rohit lauds Team India's character

Further, Rohit lauded his team for standing up to the challenges and responding with a lot of character in the series. He especially highlighted his team's six wicket win in the second Test in Delhi. In the match India were seven down for 139 in reply to 263-run first innings total from Australia. Riding on the back of a solid partnership between Axar Patel (74) and Ravichandran Ashwin (37) India conceded just one-run lead. The hosts then bowled out Australia for 113 runs before chasing the target with six wickets to spare.

"It was fantastic. Right from the word go. It was exciting, all the Test matches there was something in it for everyone to watch. We understand the importance of the series and definitely understand the importance of the opposition. After playing good cricket for 40-odd days, we stand here with a result we are quite happy with,” the opener said.

“There were challenges thrown up but we responded to them. With the result 2-1, the first two Tests, we knew how important it was to start the series. I think the Delhi Test match was something I'm really proud of because we were very much behind the game and to comeback from the situation that we did shows a lot of character and a lot of fight," he added.

India's next Test assignment is the World Test Championship (WTC) 2022-23 final against Australia from June 7 in the Oval in London.