- It’s fascinating to know how an Indian cricketer’s career graph progresses, interspersed with so much adulation, affection, following, and, of course, barbs thrown in good measures depending on how Team India fares. When Team India does well, the accolades are bountiful from every corner. Likewise, when the team fails to live up to the expectations, swords will be out to not only vilify the villain for ruining the team’s chances but also cast aspersions on the continuity of a cricketer in question itself. People closely following the fortunes of Team India would have noticed how the last few months have not gone according to the script. Remember, the embarrassing whitewash against New Zealand was met with astonishment by the Indian fans.
PC:Times of India
- Unfortunately, the series loss against Australia Down Under too created quite a stir in the cricket-mad nation since some of the proven superstars like captain Rohit Sharma and the talismanic Virat Kohli failed miserably with the bat. Despite Kohli cracking a century in one of the Tests, his less-than-average returns must be rankling all concerned. The less said the better about Rohit’s below-par performance with the bat that affected his captaincy as well, forcing him to sit out in the last Test. Team India is at a crucial juncture with the transition beckoning sooner than later. Rohit and Virat are almost at the twilight of their glorious career and would like to make no less than a spectacular exit. One last hurrah is what the much-adorned superstars would wish to have.
PC:Hindustan Times
- The moot point to ponder over here is whether the stalwarts are looking at the writing on the wall in the same way as others. Rohit’s short format form is not in question though. The way he set about Team India’s batting during the 50-over World Cup was nothing short of spectacular. The blazing starts that he so consistently gave ensured the team’s batting momentum never appeared to slacken. Virat was the highest scorer during the same World Cup, earning him the Player of the Series award. Will the aging superstars produce/repeat such defining innings in the ensuing 50-over ICC Champions Trophy? Hopefully, the class performers will rise to the occasion and deliver the goods since the short format is less demanding than the classical Tests.
PC:Mint
As reported recently, the BCCI has asked captain Rohit Sharma to spell out the future plans after the Champions Trophy. The BCCI and the selectors will be looking to plan for the 2027 ODI World Cup and also the inevitable Test cricket transition. Every cricketer would be unequivocal while mentioning that they know when to quit the game rather than being prodded incessantly. To be fair, as compared to Rohit, Virat still has some more cricket left in him since his ODI form has been outstanding, to say the least. Test returns are a bit concerning though. Virat may still be retained for the next few assignments for sure. The same cannot be said about Rohit and as such, his future in cricket largely hinges on how he produces the goods in the ensuing Champions Trophy.
