Former Indian selector and wicketkeeper-batter, Saba Karim, said that the captain Rohit Sharma, and head coach Rahul Dravid should hold a meeting with Virat Kohli to know how he is seeing things going forward, as the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 is coming close.
He also feels the national selectors and the team management must figure out whether Kohli is essential for India's preparation for the T20 World Cup 2022, as the team is possibly almost clear with their plans for the mega event to be held in Australia later this year.
Notably, Kohli has been struggling for runs for a long time due to which he was given break for the West Indies tour, and there are high chances of him missing the upcoming Zimbabwe tour.
Karim told Sports18's daily sports news show ‘SPORTS OVER THE TOP’: “First, I think the selectors and the team management have to figure out whether Virat Kohli is essential for India's preparation for India's T20 World Cup side or not. And once the selectors decide the team management feels that Virat Kohli is essential to the team’s success then I’d chart a path for Virat Kohli’s come back to great form.”
He further explained, “I think that's the time when the selectors or the captain or Rahul Dravid would love to have a chat with him and then try and take it forward. I would not want to have any kind of imposition on Virat Kohli that ‘Hey listen, you have to come back and play this Zimbabwe series otherwise we’ll not pick you for the World Cup T20.’
So, I think once you decide that he is such an essential player for the team’s success, then I reach out to him. I’ll say okay, it is up to you to decide whether you want to come back and play the Zimbabwe ODI or you want to take an extended break and come back for the Asia Cup T20.”
Meanwhile, the former BCCI official also felt dropping Kohli from the Indian team would be a "blunder", given his stature, and it is not the way to deal with it. Hence, Dravid and Rohit should make him feel that he is still "essential" to India's success despite going through the worst phase of his career.
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Karim further said, “I would say that'd be a blunder from India's perspective. Never do that. And I think Virat is such an important figure in the Indian line-up. The way I look at it, the way Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid have backed him, that makes sense because they know that Virat Kohli, fully back in good form, will be extremely beneficial for the team’s success in the World Cup T20.
So, I think for the time being, as I said earlier, have a chat with Kohli, find some kind of a common part and then try and take it forward and make him feel as much as possible that he's such an essential player for India's success and take a call after the world cup T20 have another conversation with him and then decide how to take it forward.”
He signed off by saying, “Because Kohli in the past several years has taken breaks at the right time. Although he remains an all three formats player for India. But the Indian team management has taken the right steps in order to assess his workload management and has given him the breaks at the right time.”
