Former Indian wicket-keeper batter Saba Karim reckons captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid are well aware that an in-form Virat Kohli will be an asset at the T20 World Cup. Kohli hasn’t been in the best of forms in the recent past and a lot of cricket experts, including the great Kapil Dev, said the former captain should be dropped in order to give opportunities to young players.
However, the Indian skipper Rohit Sharma has thrown his weight behind his teammate as he knows what Virat Kohli brings to the table. Rohit had recently said that they are going to back the quality of the player and the outside noise doesn’t matter to the team.
Kohli has an immaculate record in the T20I format as he has amassed 3308 runs in 99 matches at an average of 50.12 and a strike rate of 137.66. Thus, Kohli will look to get back into form before the T20I showpiece. The talisman is currently being rested for the ongoing West Indies tour.
“First, I think the selectors and the team management have to figure out whether Virat Kohli is essential for India’s preparation for India’s T20 World Cup side or not. And once the selectors decide the team management feels that Virat Kohli is essential to the team’s success then I’d chart a path for Virat Kohli’s come back to great form,” Saba Karim told SPORTS18’s daily sports news show ‘SPORTS OVER THE TOP.’
On the other hand, Karim believes the selectors and the team management should leave the decision to Virat Kohli if he wants to play the ODI series against Zimbabwe.
“I think that’s the time when the selectors or the captain or Rahul Dravid would love to have a chat with him and then try and take it forward. I would not want to have any kind of imposition on Virat Kohli that ‘Hey listen, you have to come back and play this Zimbabwe series otherwise we’ll not pick you for the World Cup T20.’ So, I think once you decide that he is such an essential player for the team’s success, then I reach out to him. I’ll say okay, it is up to you to decide whether you want to come back and play the Zimbabwe ODI or you want to take an extended break and come back for the Asia Cup T20,” Karim added.
Former India gloveman reckons India will be making a blunder if they will drop Virat Kohli if he fails to perform well against Zimbabwe in the upcoming series.
“I would say that’d be a blunder from India’s perspective. Never do that. And I think Virat is such an important figure in the Indian line-up. The way I look at it, the way Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid have backed him, that makes sense because they know that Virat Kohli, fully back in good form, will be extremely beneficial for the team’s success in the World Cup T20.
India will play three ODIs against Zimbabwe in August.
