Category: Sports

Should Virat Kohli make way for Rohit Sharma as India’s T20 captain? Is it the right move keeping the T20 World Cup of next year in mind? Former India cricketer Yuvraj Singh spiced up the split captaincy debate by bringing in workload management into play. Yuvraj hinted that it may not be such a bad idea to think about a ‘different captain’ for the shorter forms of the game.

Yuvraj cited the load on current India skipper Virat Kohli and said the team management will have to take a call on how much pressure they want to put on Kohli. “Earlier there were only two formats so it was easy for a captain to manage. If the load on Virat is more than maybe they should try a different captain for the shorter formats,” Yuvraj told Aaj Tak.

Kohli has been leading India in all three formats ever since MS Dhoni decided to step down as captain of India’s ODI and T20I sides in December 2016. Yuvraj took Rohit’s name, who is the designated vice captain of India’s limited overs side as an option to replace Kohli at the helm in the shorter formats. “Rohit has done a fairly good job. I don’t really know. They have to decide that how much workload Virat can take. It completely depends on how they want to go for the future. It is completely team management’s call,” Yuvraj added.

Rohit has proved himself as a captain at the international level. He has led India to two titles in the limited opportunities he has got as the leader. Under Rohit’s captaincy, India won the Nidahas trophy T20 tri-series in Sri Lanka and they also won the Asia Cup in 2018 at Dubai.

Rohit has also done exceedingly well as a batsman when he has been asked to lead India. In the 10 ODIs that Rohit has captained India; he averages a whopping 77.27 which includes 2 hundreds with one of them a double century against Sri Lanka at Mohali.

Yuvraj, who has played 304 ODIs and 58 T20s for India scoring 8,701 and 1,177 runs respectively, also backed Rohit to succeed as an opener in Tests. The swashbuckling left-hander urged the team management to give at least 6 Test matches to Rohit to prove his mettle at the top.

“If you ask me, Rohit Sharma should have opened in Tests from the beginning of his career. You play him one match and then drop him and say Rohit Sharma is not scoring runs in Test cricket. How can you expect someone to perform without giving him 10 Test? Now if you are making Rohit Sharma open in Tests, you should give him 6 Tests and tell him Rohit, you have got 10-12 innings, go and play your game, nobody will say anything. You gave so many chances to KL Rahul, so whoever is your opener, give him those 6 Test matches so that he can go and express his game.”

However, it is unlikely that the Indian team management would opt for a new captain in T20Is especially knowing that there are two back to back T20 World Cups lined up in 2020 and in 2021.

India head coach Ravi Shastri said he had advised Rohit Sharma to start opening the batting in red ball cricket for Mumbai back in 2015-16. Rohit has been selected as a designated Test opener for the first time in his career for the three-match series against South Africa starting on October 2.

In an exclusive interview with the Hindustan Times, Shastri said he always knew Rohit had the X-factor and he can become a match-winner even in Test cricket.

“I told Rohit, way back in 2015-16, to start opening for Mumbai. Always felt he had the X-factor. But it is always difficult, not easy for a No. 5 or 6 to do it. But it is just a mind thing, if he gets over it, he is going to be a match-winner there as well, and we are going to give him time. We are not going to push him,” said Shastri.

Rohit, primarily a middle order batsman in the early stage of his career, was asked to open in an ODI series for the first time in 2011. He did not achieve much success but then captain MS Dhoni backed him for the job again in 2013 and this time around Rohit grabbed the opportunity with both hands and since then there has been no looking back for the right hander.

Shastri cited his own transformation from a middle order batsman to an opener to explain Rohit’s case. “That is the main reason why I told him in 2015 because I was speaking from my experience. There are a lot of players who should have opened for India, just to eliminate a batsman, but very few had the balls. Sometimes in the subcontinent you just need five batsmen. That was my opportunity, that’s how I got to open the innings,” Shastri added.

The India head coach also pointed out the success former India cricketer Virender Sehwag had at the top of the order. “I had met Sehwag at a team get-together on the West Indies tour (for ODIs in 2001-02) when there was talk of asking him to open (in Tests), and I had a chat of 15 minutes where I told him to ‘go for it because that could be your best position’. The rest is history, he made it his own. I told him opening is just a mind game. (A month later, India toured England and Sehwag opened in the Tests),” Shastri added.

Jasprit Bumrah, India’s premier fast bowler, was ruled out on Tuesday from the upcoming three-match Test series against South Africa due to a minor stress fracture in his lower back. The Board of Control For Cricket In India (BCCI) announced Umesh Yadav as Jasprit Bumrah’s replacement for the Test series. Jasprit Bumrah took to Twitter on Wednesday to post a message for fans, thanking them for recovery wishes. “Injuries are part & parcel of the sport. Thank you for all your recovery wishes. My head is held high & I am aiming for a comeback that’s stronger than the setback,” Jasprit Bumrah tweeted.

India are set to play three Test matches against South Africa, starting October 2. The first match will be played in Visakhapatnam while Pune and Ranchi will host the final two Tests.

The Twenty20 International (T20I) series ended in a draw on Sunday after the first game in Dharamsala was washed out due to rain. India won the second T20I in Mohali while South Africa clinched the final T20I to level the series.

The three-Test series will be a part of the ongoing ICC World Test Championship. India are currently leading the point table with 120 points while New Zealand and Sri Lanka are at second and third place with 60 points each.

In India’s last Test series against the West Indies, Jasprit Bumrah picked up 13 wickets in two Test matches.

India’s squad for 3 Tests: Virat Kohli (capt), Mayank Agarwal, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-capt), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wk), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill.

Workload management has been one of the top agendas for the Indian team think tank in the last couple of years. Cricketers who play all three formats have been rotated and given timely breaks to ensure their optimum performance on the field. But largely the rotation has taken place in white ball cricket. The Indian selectors have preferred a full strength squad when it came to Test cricket. The only exception has been Hardik Pandya, who has been getting breaks even in red ball cricket mainly because of the rare talent he possess – India cannot afford a long term injury to their premier seam bowling all-rounder. In the same rare commodity bracket like Pandya, there is another man equally or perhaps even more crucial for Indian cricket’s future – Jasprit Bumrah.

The World’s No. 1 bowler in ODIs, Bumrah has been pivotal in India’s success in all three formats of the game in the last couple of years. Bumrah did get a much needed breather after World Cup when he was rested from the limited overs leg of the West Indies tour but according to former India fast bowler Chetan Sharma, the Indian team management should really consider the idea of resting Bumrah even from home Test matches.

“I think he should be rested (from Tests in India). We should not waste a talent like him. There’s a reason why he’s the best bowler in the world now, we shouldn’t test him in these conditions at all,” Sharma told Hindustan Times in an exclusive chat.

India have a long home season lined up which also includes three Tests against South Africa and two against Bangladesh – both part of World Test Championships.

“World Test Championship is going on and Bumrah is very important for India’s plans. There’s no need to prove it to the world that Bumrah can take wickets on Indian pitches. Ultimately we need to win and earn points,” Sharma added.

Ever since making his Test debut in South Africa, Bumrah has missed only 3 Test matches due to injury. Despite playing 12 out of 15 Tests, Bumrah has bowled the second most overs – 451.5 – among all Indian bowlers, only 4 overs less than Mohammed Shami, who has played in all 15 Tests. Only Pat Cummins, James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Josh Hazlewood have bowled more overs than Bumrah among fast bowlers since January 2018. But all of them have played more matches than Bumrah, who bowls about 38 overs per Test – the second best after Hazlewood’s 39 overs per Test.

Adding the numbers of ODIs and T20Is, Bumrah has bowled 724.3 overs in international cricket since making his Test debut, which is the most by any Indian bowler in the same period and the third most among fast bowlers in the world behind Pat Cummins (809.2) and Kagiso Rabada (797).

Miscommunication” between Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer nearly saw both players walking out to bat at the same time, creating confusion during the third T20 International between India and South Africa here on Sunday.

After the dismissal of opener Shikhar Dhawan, both Iyer and Pant seemed headed towards the pitch before the latter eventually walked in to join his captain at the number four position.

Kohli was asked about it at the post-match press conference after South Africa emerged winners by nine wickets. “I think there was a miscommunication. That was what I understood afterwards,” he said.

“The batting coach had a word with both of them. There was a misunderstanding over who has to go at what stage,” Kohli said. “It was a little funny as well afterwards because they both wanted to walk in. So it would have been very funny if both reached the pitch, you know three batsmen in the field.”

Asked who was originally slated to bat at number four, Kohli said they “had plans” according to phases.

“I think after 10 overs what we had decided was that Rishabh would walk in, and before that, Shreyas had to walk in. But I think both of them got confused and didn’t realise who has to walk in at what stage of the game,” Kolhi said.

Shikhar Dhawan had a hard time in West Indies in the limited overs format as he struggled to get runs on the board. But the left-handed batsman showed signs of return to form in the 2nd T20I against South Africa in Mohali. The southpaw hammered 40 runs in 31 balls and was building a good partnership with skipper Virat Kohli before he was unceremoniously dismissed following a mind boggling catch from David Miller. When the 33-year-old return to the field in the 3rd T20I in Bengaluru against Proteas, he could join Kohli and vice-captain Rohit Sharma in elite T20 list.

Dhawan, who has scored 6,996 runs in T20 cricket needs just four runs to complete 7,000 runs in the shortest format. If he manages to do so, he will become only the fourth Indian following Kohli, Suresh Raina, and Rohit to reachmark the landmark in T20s.

Overall, Dhawan will be the 15th player to cross 7,000 in T20s. While Kohli has 8,547 runs in the format, Raina has 8,392 and Rohit has 8,303 runs.

India continued their winning run in T20Is as they defeated South Africa in the 2nd T20I in Mohali. The skipper Virat Kohli led his side from the front as he hammered an unbeaten 72 to help the men in blue chase down the easy total of 150 in 19 overs on a good batting track. Shikhar Dhawan played a supporting role with the bat, scoring 40 in 31 balls, before he was dismissed with David Miller pulling one of the best catches ever seen in cricket.

Virat Kohli looks an effective captain in the international arena simply because he has got two successful captains like Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Rohit Sharma in the side, former India opener Gautam Gambhir said.

Dhoni is considered as one of India’s greatest captains having won two World Cups while Rohit has been a very successful franchise skipper leading Mumbai Indians to an unprecedented four IPL titles.

“Still a long way to go for him (Kohli). Kohli was very good in the last World Cup (in England) but he has a long way to go. He captains so well in international cricket because he has got Rohit Sharma, he had M.S. Dhoni for a long time,” Gambhir told reporters after interacting with the students of a university on Thursday.

Citing Kohli’s record in the Indian Premier League, Gambhir said a skipper’s effectiveness is tested when you don’t have the services of several talented players.

“Captaincy credentials are noticed when you are leading a franchise, when you do not have other players supporting you,” said Gambhir, who led Kolkata Knight Riders to two IPL titles.

“I have been honest whenever I have spoken about this. See what Rohit Sharma has achieved for Mumbai Indians, see what Dhoni has achieved for Chennai Super Kings. If you compare that with RCB, the results are there for everyone to see”, the cricketer-turned politician said.

Gambhir also backed limited overs vice-captain Rohit Sharma to open the batting in the Test format.

“I think K.L. Rahul has been given a longer run. It is time for Rohit to open the batting in Test cricket. If you pick him in the squad, he has to be a part of the playing XI. If he does not fit your playing XI, no point in picking him in the squad of 15 or 16. He is too good a player to be sitting on the bench.”

Gambhir revealed that he thought about quitting cricket in 2007 after he was overlooked for the ODI World Cup squad.

“In 2007, when I missed the 50-over World Cup, that was the lowest moment in my cricketing career. I had given up on cricket. Before that, I had missed both U-15 and U-19 World Cups.

“In 2007, I thought I was the closest to playing the World Cup, but when they did not include me in the squad, I had almost given up on cricket,” Gambhir said.

However, in the same year, India were crowned champions of the maiden T20 World Cup in in South Africa with Gambhir finished as the leading run-scorer in the tournament.

“Then I was chosen in World T20 in 2007 and I got dismissed for a duck in the first match against Pakistan. But as fate has it, I finished as the leading run-scorer in the World Cup and we ended up winning the tournament so one should never give up,” Gambhir said.

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly stated that KL Rahul will be under pressure to keep his spot as India’s designated No.4 in ODIs. Ganguly named two cricketers who will push Rahul for that No. 4 spot in the middle order. The former India captain who is currently the president of Cricket Association of Bengal identified Shreyas Iyer and Manish Pandey as the probable contenders for India’s No.4 spot, which has given a lot of headache to the team management in the last couple of years.

Rahul recently lost his spot in the Indian Test side due to lack of consistency. “With Rohit and Shikhar at the top as the best possible opening pair, KL Rahul will be pushed. He has lost his place in Test cricket due to indifferent form and the likes of Shreyas and Manish Pandey will keep him on his toes if he wants to hold onto the No. 4 slot,” Ganguly wrote in his column for The Times of India.

Mayank Agarwal has made a solid start to his Test career. After peeling off runs in the domestic circuit, the right-hander got to make his debut for the Indian team in the Melbourne Test against Australia and has since, looked a very solid option right at the top. Ahead of the home season against South Africa, the right-hander believes that all the years of slogging it out in the domestic circuit should bear fruits when he takes guard in the first Test. 

“Playing at home is always special and I’m really looking forward to the series. There was a lot I learnt in Australia, there was even more learning in the West Indies. I’m working on what I’ve learnt and I’m eager to go out and put those lessons to use against South Africa and have a good series at home,” Mayank told Times of India.

“What I took from Virat’s batting is intensity and mindset in terms of how he looks at and reads situations. He also brings in a lot of energy. He is the guy at the forefront, leading by example. There were so many guys doing the job well, Jinks (Ajinkya Rahane), (Hanuma) Vihari. It is great to be involved with a team like this,” he further added.

KL Rahul has been dropped and Rohit Sharma will now walk out to open the innings with Mayank. Also, there are a number of young options in domestic cricket knocking on the doors which makes this phase rather exciting for Indian cricket. Also, it will put pressure on the incumbents to keep performing at the highest level. However, for Mayank it is only about fussing over things which he can control.

MS Dhoni has hardly uttered a word about his future with the Indian cricket team, leaving the cricket fraternity and fans in a state of confusion. Many ex-cricketers think MS Dhoni should decide on his future himself. But former India captain Sourav Ganguly feels Virat Kohli and the selectors should take a call on MS Dhoni’s future. “I don’t know what the selectors think, what Virat thinks. They are the important persons, let them make the decision,” Sourav Ganguly said.

India’s home season began with the first T20I against South Africa being washed out. The second match of the T20I series is scheduled to take place on September 18 in Mohali.

Ganguly believes India are the favourites to win the T20I and Test series against South Africa.

“India are favourites. India at home is a dangerous team. They are very hard to beat and that’s been the case for years,” Ganguly said.

Ganguly is currently the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president, besides being associated with IPL franchise Delhi Capitals as the team advisor.

“Let one coach finish, then we will think about the other coach,” said the 47-year old with a smile on his face.

“In any case I am already a coach. I look after the Delhi Capitals in the IPL. In my first season last year, they did well. They went to the semifinals from being last for last seven years so it’s been good,” he added.