Former India cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu spoke on whether Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma still add value to the Indian T20I team. Both the veteran batters will be using the upcoming IPL 2024 as preparation for the upcoming T20 World Cup in West Indies and the USA in June.
While BCCI secretary Jay Shah has confirmed that Rohit Sharma will captain India in the ICC event, there have been reports that the selectors are not keen on picking Virat Kohli in the T20 World Cup squad as they feel he doesn’t fit well into the modern way of batting in the shortest format of the game.
Notably, both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli made their T20I return recently at home against Afghanistan. They had not played in the format since the semi-final of the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia.
In a recent interview with PTI, facilitated by the IPL's official TV broadcaster 'Star Sports', Navjot Singh Sidhu called both Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma ‘giants of the cricketing world’ and said that they will be needed in the T20 World Cup.
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"They will be needed there. These are giants of the cricketing world. Form is like the morning dew, it can elude you but the class of these people has the stamp of authority.
I would rate Kohli as the greatest Indian batsman for the simple reason, his fitness, he is getting fitter with age like old wine does. Technically very sound and he has the uncanny knack of adapting to all three formats, same goes for Rohit," Sidhu explained in his inimitable style.
"Both are quality players. I am not sure about Rohit's fitness levels. With age, you tend to slow down, and your reflexes tend to go. Sehwag with those glasses, his reflexes were not the same, I saw it in the IPL,” he added.
Sidhu further added that he closely followed both batters in the recent ICC World Cup 2023.
"In the recent World Cup they were playing very well, they just had one bad game, one bad game cannot asses the fortunes of a team. I see the Indian team ruling the roost for a long time because the system that breeds cricketers is very congenial and conducive,” Sidhu said.
Sidhu also spoke about Hardik Pandya replacing Rohit Sharma as Mumbai Indians captain.
"In my time, people would carry on despite bad form because there were no replacements. Now, Hardik Pandya is replacing the Indian captain as captain at Mumbai Indians because he has performed so well. Not that it is derogatory to Rohit but it is just a thought process. The old order must change yielding place to the new," said Sidhu.
(PTI inputs)
