Image Credit- PTI
Since the T20 World Cup last year, India’s two batting
mainstays, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, have not played in T20Is. Since then,
Hardik Pandya has been captaining the Indian team in the shortest format;
however, due to an injury sustained during the World Cup, Suryakumar Yadav has
assumed captaincy for the current series against Australia. Since neither Rohit
nor Kohli have publicly discussed their future in Twenty20 Internationals, the
team has continued to include players like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad,
and Tilak Varma, who have all shown well in the shorter format.
As a result, there are still rumours swirling around
the two players’ futures in the format. News agency PTI stated on Wednesday
that Rohit Sharma is not expected to play in T20Is any longer and had even
spoken about his future in the shorter format prior to the ODI World Cup
starting. The report went on to say that the BCCI brass or the selectors might
just ask Rohit to change his stance if the younger generation doesn’t perform.
Although Virat Kohli was not mentioned in the report,
it seems likely that the two veteran Indian batsmen will be given the authority
to decide how long to play in Twenty20 international matches. Additionally,
Ashish Nehra, a former bowler who is now a coach, believes that the team should
be allowed to decide whether to go back to the shortest format. Nehra thinks
that if Rohit and Kohli opt to play in T20Is, the younger players will have to
give way to them.
“Age is no criterion. What matters is how many runs
you are scoring. We spoke about Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shubman
Gill… but if Rohit Sharma wants to play, they have to compete with him. Here
is a 36-year-old super-youngster, fearless guy. When we talk about Virat Kohli
or Rohit Sharma, again — World Cup is very far — if they want to play and
they are scoring runs, youngsters will have to beat them to make a place in the
XI,” Nehra said on JioCinema ahead of India’s first T20I against Australia on
Thursday.
“Loss in the ODI World Cup shouldn’t make a
difference. How those two think is the most important part. Virat Kohli is
scoring runs in IPL, Rohit Sharma is performing, any selector will be tempted
and they will have discussions unless they announce their retirement, which I
hope won’t be the case in near future,” said Nehra further.