File photo of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma© BCCI/Sportzpics
With the final of the ICC World Test Championship just around the corner and Rohit Sharma’s top fitness no guarantee, former India head coach Ravi Shastri made an interesting ‘captain suggestion’. Shastri believes that if Rohit is unavailable to lead India for some reason, Virat Kohli should be handed the team’s baton. In fact, Shastri felt the same should have happened in the rescheduled Birmingham Test where Jasprit Bumrah was given command of the team in Rohit’s absence, even though Kohli was part of the team.
While the suggestion sent fans into a state of nostalgia, former Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh doesn’t entirely agree with Shastri’s take on the matter.
“This will be like taking a huge step back (making Kohli a substitute captain). If you keep going backwards, how do you move forward? Not that Virat was a bad captain. Until the time he was in charge, Virat was that is brilliant. Look at this record – the Test wins at home and abroad – it speaks for itself. He also delivered the results. But I absolutely believe that if Rohit is not playing or injured or whatever, we will look to someone have to look differently,” Harbhajan told Hindustan Times.
However, Harbhajan doesn’t mind seeing Kohli lead the team for a one-off match like the World Test Championship final. But if for some reason Rohit misses a match in a bilateral series, going back to Virat isn’t something the Turbonator likes.
“If it’s a one-off game, then Virat can indeed take the lead. But not otherwise. If it’s a big game, like a WTC final, why not? But if you look at a series of four games where Rohit is not.” available, then now is the time to invest in a new captain. But going back to Virat for a long streak isn’t a step in the right direction. First, Virat won’t do it, and even if he does, it will send an indication that we haven’t prepared the next captain.” he explained.
Topics mentioned in this article