<p>The rotation-translation coupling of the particle has been employed by emerging artificial microswimmers to generate directed propulsion in broad biological and technological applications. In this work, we numerically investigate the effects of cylinder radius, gap size, and shear-thinning rheology on the induced translation of a rotating sphere inside a cylinder along the axial and radial directions. In a Newtonian fluid, the mode transition from rolling to sliding is made possible by modulating the gap size, and it is delayed in a larger cylinder with a higher critical gap size. The maximum sliding speed decreases with increasing cylinder radius and occurs at a larger peak gap size. Within the weakly shear-thinning regime, both impaired rolling and enhanced sliding are observed largely as a result of the substantial change in the viscous shear force on the lower half of the sphere surface. As the shear-thinning effect becomes more substantial, both the sliding enhancement and the retardation are observed, depending on the size of the threshold gap. In general, a sphere rotating closer to the cylinder wall indicates a higher sliding speed in a stronger shear-thinning fluid. We present a comprehensive analysis of micro-roller dynamics in cylindrical confinement, revealing a phase diagram partitioned into three distinct regimes (I: mode transition, II: enhanced sliding, III: impaired sliding) that is not observed for a planar boundary in our previous work (Chen et al., 2021). Our findings provide insight into the controlled manipulation of particle-based micromachines in complex biological fluids, elucidating the underlying physics of translational-rotational coupling in spherical microrollers, particularly in scenarios involving boundary proximity. This understanding is vital for achieving the precise control required in emerging biomedical applications.</p>