Indian stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's future in the T20I Cricket is reportedly under question. The star duo recently participated in the ODI World Cup 2023 but have not played the T20 format for more than a year. The last time they participated in a 20-over game was in the T20 World Cup 2022 and with the ODI World Cup in 2023, the duo were rested from the format along with KL Rahul.
After the completion of ODI World Cup 2023, a report surfaced which said that Rohit had told the selectors of being fine for not getting considered for T20Is even before the 50-over tournament. However, there is nothing official so far. Notably, West Indies Legend Brian Lara has backed Indian icons Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma for the upcoming T20 World Cup in the West Indies and USA. Lara has stated that both Rohit and Kohli have a wealth of experience and it will be huge for the Indian team for the 20-over tournament next year.
"I think whichever team India picks, they are going to be a force to be reckoned with. But you can't replace experience. What Virat and Rohit bring is a lot of experience. They know the conditions in the Caribbean. They have played there. I wouldn't say that they should dictate their future but I think the sort of players, the legends that they are in the game, I am almost sure there will be a lot of respect in finding out what they want to do, how far they want to push it and make the decision then," Lara said to news agency ANI.
Former Indian cricketer Ashish Nehra believes that Rohit and Kohli can play T20Is if they want. "Age is no criterion. What matters is how many runs you are scoring. We spoke about Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Shubman Gill...but if Rohit Sharma wants to play, they have to compete with him. Here is a 36-year-old super-fit, fearless guy. When we talk about Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma, again - World Cup is very far - if they want to play and they are scoring runs, youngsters will have to beat them to make a place in the XI," Nehra said earlier when India faced Australia in the 1st T20I of the ongoing series.
