"He does not know what is happening inside" - Rohit Sharma responds to Kapil Dev's criticism of Virat Kohli
Indian captain Rohit Sharma has politely disagreed with legendary all-rounder Kapil Dev's opinion on Virat Kohli's future in India's T20I team.
Kohli has struggled to score big for a while, whereas other players like Deepak Hooda have grabbed whatever opportunity they have received with both hands. The former Indian skipper scored just 12 runs in two matches during the Men in Blue's recent T20I series against England.
Speaking to a news channel as quoted by PTI, Kapil Dev gave the analogy of how veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was benched for England Tests. Here's what Dev said about Virat Kohli's future:
"If World No. 2 Test bowler Ashwin can be dropped from the Test side, then your No. 1 batter can also be dropped. If he (Virat) is not performing, you cannot continue to keep these boys (youngsters like Deepak Hooda) out."
However, in a press conference after India's T20I series win against England, Rohit Sharma defended Kohli. The Indian skipper stated that those on the outside do not know the process that the Indian team follows:
"He (Kapil) is watching the game from the outside and does not know what is happening inside. We have our thought processes. We build our team, and behind this there is a lot of thinking. We back the boys and give them opportunities."
Sharma added:
"So these things you do not get to know from outside. So whatever is happening outside is not important, but what is happening inside is more important for us."
. @ImRo45 on virat's present form https://t.co/HLYD6uYyPj
One or two bad series don't make Virat Kohli a bad player: Rohit Sharma
During the interaction, Rohit Sharma spoke about how Virat Kohli has dominated even the shortest format of the game over the past decade. The 35-year-old added that the Indian team believes in Kohli's quality and said:
"If you talk about form, then everyone goes through ups and downs. The player's quality does not get affected. When a player is doing well for so many years, then one or two bad series does not make him a bad player. We should not overlook his past performances."
Sharma continued:
"We, who are in the team, know the importance of the player. They (former players) have got all the right to talk about it, but it does not matter for us too much."
The way captain Rohit Sharma supported Virat Kohli in Virat's tough time in yesterday press conference it was amazing. And when Virat Kohli was captain, he also supported Rohit a lot. Showed the bond of Virat Kohli & Rohit Sharma - Brothers, two diamonds of Indian cricket. https://t.co/iyYcU46swQ
It will be interesting to see how Virat Kohli fares in the ODI series against England. The three matches against the Englishmen could perhaps present him with the best opportunity to pace his innings and regain some form.