Ravi Shastri, former India head coach, believes Virat Kohli should lead the Indian cricket team in important games such as the World Test Championship (WTC) final whenever Rohit Sharma is unavailable due to “unforeseen circumstances.”
As an example, he said Kohli should have captained the Indian team during the rescheduled fifth Test against England last year after Rohit was ruled out with COVID-19. In his absence, Jasprit Bumrah had led the side in Manchester.
“If it’s for a major game like that, I want Rohit to be fit, he is the captain. But god forbid something happens under unforeseen circumstances, definitely I’ll look in that direction,” Shastri told ESPNCricinfo.
The former India all-rounder said he would have recommended Kohli to lead in the fifth Test against England. Under his captaincy, India had taken a 2-1 lead in 2021 before a COVID-19 outbreak in the visiting camp led to the series being postponed.
In the period between the series being halted and it resuming a year later, Kohli had stepped down from his leadership role with the Indian team.
“Once Rohit was injured, I thought Virat would captain. If I was still there – I’m sure Rahul (Dravid) might have done the same thing, I have not spoken to him – I would’ve recommended to the board that it’s only fair he leads because he was captain of the team that was leading 2-1 in the series and probably could have got the best out of the team,” Shastri said.
Kohli had also given up his captaincy duties with IPL team Royal Challengers Bangalore. But with current skipper Faf du Plessis nursing a rib injury, Kohli has stepped up to take charge.
“He’s in a very good space, enjoying his cricket. That’s the feeling I got as opposed to last year when we were sitting and discussing does he need a break, does he not need a break. He seemed to have the burden of the whole world on his shoulders,” Shastri said.
“Now it’s refreshing. The enthusiasm, passionate energy and enjoyment have come back, which for me was the best thing to see. Runs you might or might not get but when you see someone, and the passion, enjoyment and drive is back again, it’s good,” he added.
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