Sourav Ganguly, a former captain of India and president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), supported captain Rohit Sharma and star batsman Virat Kohli’s decision to skip the white-ball leg of the South Africa tour, citing the opener and number three hitter as a “integral and important part of Indian cricket.”
Both of the batters will return and play in the red ball format, according to the BCCI’s announcement on Thursday. Kohli and Rohit have been given a break from the white-ball leg of their South Africa tour.
Notwithstanding a few international matches and the forthcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season, Kohli and Rohit have once again become the talk of the town as India gets ready for the T20 World Cup next year. The two haven’t participated in a T20I match for the national team in over a year.
When the Men in Blue lost to England in the knockout stage of the 2022 T20 World Cup at Adelaide Oval, Rohit and Kohli last participated in a Twenty20 International match for India.
With the 2024 T20I World Cup quickly approaching, Ganguly was asked if Rohit and Kohli belonged in the shortest format of cricket. He responded that both players were in excellent form in the just finished 2023 ODI WC and that the opener and former captain “absolutely fit in the T20I format.”
“They fit the T20I format perfectly. Virat Kohli performed admirably during the World Cup, as you have seen. You observed Rohit Sharma’s performance during the World Cup. They are a crucial and indispensable component of Indian cricket. Bilateral pressure is different from that of the World Cup. They both performed admirably in this World Cup, in my opinion. In an event on Friday in Kolkata, Ganguly stated, “Hopefully, six to seven months from now, they will be against at their best in the West Indies.”
Australia thrashed India, who were the clear event favorites, and went on to win their sixth 50-overs World Cup with a victory margin of six wickets. The captain of India finished the 2023 World Cup with 597 runs in 11 innings, trailing only Virat Kohli, who scored the most runs (765), in the competition.
With his incredible run of form, Kohli set a record for the most runs scored by a single batter in World Cup history. With an average of 96.62, his 765 beat Sachin Tendulkar’s previous record of 673 from 2003. He passed Tendulkar for the record for most career ODI tons when he scored three centuries during the tournament.
“They took the break quite rightly because there is a lot of cricket going on all the time. I find it hard to believe that after the World Cup final on November 19, you are playing a T20I series against the same team three days later. Getting back up after a setback is not an easy task, particularly when the World Cup adds extra pressure and demands. I’m glad they had a respite. They’ll return rejuvenated for the Test match. Following the World Cup and IPL, there are five Test matches against England. So it’s cricket all the time. “Hopefully, they’ll return rejuvenated and continue to perform,” Ganguly continued.
During the white-leg tour of South Africa without Rohit, Suryakumar Yadav will continue to lead the team in the Twenty20 format, with Ravindra Jadeja serving as his deputy.
KL Rahul will be the captain for the three ODI matches. The 50-over format will also witness the comeback of Sanju Samson and Yuzvendra Chahal.
On December 10 at Kingsmead Stadium, a three-match Twenty20 International match will kick off the tour. The St George’s Oval will host the second Twenty20 International on December 12. At the Wanderers Stadium on December 14, the 20-over format will come to an end.
The Wanderers Stadium will host the 50-over match on December 17. December 19 and December 21 will be the dates of the second and final ODIs, respectively.
