Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are having a difficult time with the bat in Test cricket. While Rohit had accumulated 31 runs in five innings in the Border-Gavaskar series, Kohli has 190 runs in nine innings.
Kohli, who was dismissed for six in the second innings of the Sydney Tes, had two notable knocks of 100 in Perth and 36 in Melbourne. However, his other seven innings read 44. Rohit didn't had any noteworthy knock in the series and stepped away from the Sydney Test.
After stepping away from the SCG Test, Rohit said that he is not going anywhere and has not retired. Many still believe the road to England would be difficult for him. For Kohli, many feel he might be given a chance despite his recent failures and the same mode of dismissal with India head coach Ravi Shastri stating that he could play for three or four years.
“No, I think Virat Kohli will play," Shastri told the Star Sports recently. “Virat will play for some time, forget the way he got out today. I think he will play for 3 or 4 more years. As far as Rohit is concerned, it’s a call. At the top of the order, his footwork isn’t the same. He is probably, at times, a little late in meeting the ball. So it’s his call at the end of the series."
However, a former selector feels that the current selection committee might find it hard to pick the two stalwarts based on IPL performance. "It would be very hard for selectors to pick either Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli on the basis of IPL performance or form. There has to be some red-ball cricket for them in the lead-up to the England tour. Else you can't justify their selections," the former selectors told PTI.
There is a red-ball domestic season coming in India with the resumption of the Ranji Trophy. Kohli is a Delhi player. Delhi have a clash against Saurashtra from January 23-26 in Rajkot. However, it does not look likely that he will play in the tournament in January for the selection of the series that will be played in June.
