Leg and off: Should Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma play Duleep Trophy?
Monday started with a small shock and a ton of excitement for the Indian cricketing world but then it all fizzled out into a more mundane bluish Monday.
The Indian Express gave the excitement by reporting that, out of nowhere, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will "likely" feature in the Duleep Trophy in September. Kohli and Rohit haven't played a red-ball domestic game in 12 and eight years respectively. They usually take breaks from less consequential bilateral series to manage their high workload, and haven't gone to the grind despite being asked by several former cricketers and pundits over the years.
So why now? It seemed hardly believable.
But then, Cricbuzz reported that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) hasn't "directed" but given the duo the option to appear in the tournament, which will be played among four teams picked by the national selectors. It felt more believable.
Only hours later, ESPNcricinfo claimed that Kohli and Rohit "won't be available" for the tournament. Now, that was close to what we were used to seeing -- the shock was gone and normalcy was restored.
Now, Sportskeeda can not, at this stage, independently verify any of these claims. What we can do, though, is offer you the debate -- even if they are available and willing, should Kohli and Rohit be needed to play the Duleep Trophy? Is it beneficial to them and the team?
Check both sides of the wicket in this latest edition of Leg and Off:
Why it makes sense
Now, if Kohli and Rohit do come out and play the Duleep Trophy, it might be considered a win for the Gautam Gambhir philosophy. He has often spoken about the importance of domestic performances and emphasized the same in his first press conference after replacing Rahul Dravid as the head coach.
If that's the case, it might be a good marker of sorts. Apart from helping young, skilful red-ball cricketers, who don't feature in the IPL regularly, learn from them, it'll send out the right signal that no player, even two of the greatest in the world, is above Indian cricket and rules are the same for everyone.
For Kohli and Rohit personally, too, this move might be helpful. The former especially struggled against spin in the recent ODI series against Sri Lanka and Rohit's issues against tweakers in the IPL are well documented too.
Playing on turning tracks in the Duleep Trophy against a variety of spinners from around the country would be the perfect skill camp. If they get better, it'll benefit the team; if their issues persist, they'll get a bigger reality check. It may also give a young bowler the confidence-boosting experience of taking their wicket.
On a broader scale, it might even give a new marketing boost to domestic cricket. Indian audiences never minded watching big domestic finals and turning out to the ground to watch established names representing their states or zones. But those players are now purely focused on internationals and the IPL.
If more stars are persuaded to feature in domestic tournaments, broadcasters will get more marketing juice, generating more ad revenue, which would translate to more help for the state associations to better develop their facilities.
Why it could be avoided
Now, for the flip side, you have to ask what would be the cost of these advantages. The first big one would be that ahead of an extremely hectic season of Tests against Bangladesh, New Zealand and Australia, India's two most important players won't have as much rest as they'd have liked.
They are coming after a long season which involved two World Cups and an IPL and haven't got such a break in a long time. The 15 extra days they'll get with their families, and away from the sport, might do their physical and mental health a world of good.
Remember, they are no longer in their 20s. Kohli is 35 and Rohit is 37 -- and although they are quite fit, their bodies aren't as injury-resistant as once were in their prime.
As the BCCI have done by reportedly resting Jasprit Bumrah for the Duleep Trophy -- there's talk that he might not even play the Bangladesh series -- Kohli and Rohit need to be protected a bit more. Even minor injuries to them could have a big impact on India's Border Gavaskar Trophy campaign in November-December.
Now, although their spin game is a concern, India don't need a hard fix immediately. The Bangladesh and New Zealand series shouldn't be too difficult if the home side prepare good, even pitches -- tracks where not only Kohli and Rohit prosper but Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja dominate too. While for the Australia tour, the team will need more adeptness against pace from everyone.
None of this seems worth taking chances away from two promising young batters who can come in place of already settled legends, impress in the Duleep Trophy and add depth to the side -- just in case the team faces similar injury issues to the last Test tour of Australia.