Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri has urged the selectors and the team management to leave Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma alone, and warned them of the consequences of messing with the giants of the game.
Indian greats Rohit and Virat have been facing the constant heat for performing, as both have aged and are playing in only one format of international cricket, with limited gametime, and lastly, they have the management looking for the slightest of opportunities to get rid of them.
Ravi Shastri issues a warning not to mess with Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma
Ever since the Test retirement, endless talks have surrounded Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Ravi Shastri has stepped up to issue a stern warning to the BCCI of consequences for having needlessly poked the two greats. Shastri highlighted that irking them for a personal agenda is like shooting yourself in the foot.
Your daily dose of cricket!
“These two are grandfathers. White-ball giants, toh aise players ke saath aap masti mat karo yaar (don’t needle them). Agar unka dimaag theek ho gaya na, and sahi button dabaaye na, sab aaju-baaju nikal jayenge (If their brains get fixed and they press the right button, everyone will run for cover,” Shastri said in a teaser video from his interview released by Prabhat Khabar.
When asked about who these people are who are having ‘masti’ with the two greats, Shastri was direct and simply answered, “The ones who want to.” Shastri was one of the few men to have pointed out that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma must stay with the team till the 2027 World Cup, but mentioned that it won’t be an easy task for them to survive with so many emerging young talents.
“You can’t buy experience from the market outside,” says Ravi Shastri
Ravi Shastri can undoubtedly be said to be the architect of the golden era of Indian cricket, a phase between 2017-2021, when Shastri was the head coach of the Indian team and the Men in Blue were invincible in both red-ball and white-ball cricket.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were the two pillars in those times when India were the most feared team, surpassing even Australia in ICC Rankings. The madman of Indian cricket, hence, acknowledges the contributions of the two legends in the game.
“You can’t buy experience from the market outside. One is a master chaser, the other one has three double centuries in ODI cricket,” he added, indirectly calling Kohli and Rohit irreplaceable.
Ro-Ko are not getting along with the Indian management
It has been very evident that ever since Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli announced their retirement from the longest format of the game, doubts have been raised over their ODI careers as well. However, the two veterans have shown grit and determination to fight till their last innings to hold on to their spots till the 2027 ICC World Cup.
However, it is clear that neither Rohit Sharma nor Virat Kohli is on good terms with the current heads of the Indian management, be it Gautam Gambhir or Ajit Agarkar. The BCCI also forced them to return to domestic cricket, which also did not go well with the veterans.
While some former cricketers like Kris Srikkanth and Mohammad Kaif did not mince their words while claiming that India cannot win the 2027 World Cup without the two veterans in the side, the BCCI has not guaranteed them spots.
