“Rohit And Virat Should be Picked For T20 World Cup,” said Gambhir on T20I Future of Indian Team: Former India opener Gautam Gambhir stated he would want to see both Rohit and Virat Kohli participate in the T20 World Cup, which is slated to take place in the West Indies and the United States of America in June 2024, following speculations that Rohit Sharma is unlikely to play T20 Internationals going forward.
As of November 22, reports indicate that it is doubtful that the Indian captain would compete in the game’s shortest format going forward. The strict schedule of competing in all contests, including the Indian Premier League (IPL), and the seven future Test matches that are slated to take place between December 2023 and March 2024 appear to have affected this strategic choice.
Rohit and Virat haven’t played for India in a T20I since the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-final in Australia. In order to provide selectors with a fresh perspective, the dynamic pair made the decision to take a break from the format. For the past year or so, Hardik Pandya has served as India’s unofficial Twenty20 captain.
In a discussion with Sportskeeda, Gambhir expressed his optimism for both guys to be selected for T20Is and for Rohit to lead the team in the World Cup the following year. According to the former Indian opener, Rohit ought to be chosen as the team leader rather than just another batsman.
“They both need to get picked, both should be picked. More importantly, I want to see Rohit Sharma as captain in the T20 World Cup. Yes, Hardik has been captaining in T20Is but I would still want to see Rohit as captain in the World Cup. Don’t pick Rohit Sharma only as a batter,” said Gambhir.
“Rohit is a phenomenal leader, he has proved that with his leadership and batting in this ODI World Cup. If you are picking Rohit, which you should then he should be selected as a captain who can bat. And Virat also should be an automatic choice,” he concluded.
With him on the show was Wasim Akram and he also shared his thoughts similar to Gambhir.
“There are barely six months to go for the T20 World Cup. I will pick both Rohit and Kohli. They are the main players for the team. You need a bit of experience even in T20s, can’t build a team with only youngsters,” he said.
Stats show that Rohit Sharma has featured in 148 Twenty20 international matches, scoring 3853 runs at a strike rate of around 140 with four centuries. If the younger players don’t perform, the BCCI brass or the selectors may persuade Rohit to change his mind about where he stands.
It is reasonable, though, that Rohit would like to control his workload at this point in his career and make sure he doesn’t sustain many injuries going forward.
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