"Unka comparison nahi banta" - Salman Butt believes Rohit Sharma's ability is way beyond that of Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan
Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt believes Indian captain Rohit Sharma is one of the most destructive batters he has ever seen.
Rohit's exploits over the course of his incredible career have been well-documented. However, the opener enjoyed an average Asia Cup 2022 and is currently 14th in the ICC Men's T20I Batting rankings. Pakistan's Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam occupy the top two spots.
Despite the disparity in their positions in the ranking charts, Butt has claimed that the duo can't be compared to the Indian skipper.
There has been a lot of debate about whether Rohit could have been fitter than he is at the moment because many feel he could have achieved a lot more. Butt, too, felt that had the Indian captain maintained the fitness levels close to that of Virat Kohli, he would have been even more destructive.
Speaking in a video on his YouTube channel, here's what the former Pakistan opener had to say about his destructive ability:
“Unka comparison nahi banta (Rohit can't be compared with Azam and Rizwan). With his set of skills, Rohit ki fitness Kohli se aadhi bhi ho, toh usse zyada destructive player nahi hai (With his set of skills, Rohit would be the most destructive player if his fitness levels were half as good as Kohli's).”
He added that only former South African cricketer AB de Villiers could've come close to Rohit's explosiveness had the latter maintained higher fitness standards.
India name strong squad led by Rohit Sharma for 2022 T20 World Cup
Unlike last year, the Indian selectors have banked on experience for the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia. It will be interesting to see if the Men in Blue can finally break their 15-year jinx in the showpiece event, having won their maiden edition back in 2007 under MS Dhoni.
India squad for ICC T20 World Cup: Rohit Sharma (captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Arshdeep Singh.
Standby players: Mohammed Shami, Shreyas Iyer, Ravi Bishnoi, Deepak Chahar.