"Who after Rohit Sharma?" - Irfan Pathan says preparing leaders should be one of India's focus areas in 2024
Irfan Pathan feels finding suitable leadership replacements for Rohit Sharma should be one of Team India's focus areas in 2024.
Rohit captained India to the 2023 ODI World Cup final and is currently leading them in the ongoing two-match Test series against South Africa. There is no clarity yet on whether the veteran opener will continue to lead the Men in Blue in white-ball cricket going forward, including the T20 World Cup later this year.
While speaking on Star Sports, Pathan opined that finding future leaders after Rohit should be one of India's focus areas in 2024. He elaborated:
"There are chances of a lot of changes in 2024. So if we prepare two or three leaders, we won't have too many problems. The focus should also be on which leaders you will prepare. The Indian team performed amazingly well for five years under Virat Kohli's leadership in Test cricket."
The former India all-rounder added:
"They reached the No. 1 ranking. His fitness was fantastic. He performed well in every match and extracted performance from the team in every match. Rohit Sharma also got the team to perform amazingly well. We saw it in the World Cup and he won the Asia Cup but who after Rohit Sharma?"
Pathan highlighted that the Indian think-tank needs to find leaders who can play cricket throughout the year. He added that fitness, which is expected from young players, should be paramount.
"You felt Mohammed Shami's absence" - Irfan Pathan says India need to prepare a good fast-bowling unit
Irfan Pathan believes preparing fast-bowling backups is another focus area for the Indian team. He reasoned:
"I personally feel the Indian team needs to prepare a good fast-bowling unit in 2024. We saw what happened in South Africa. We didn't have very good fully ready backups for fast bowlers. It's not that they don't have quality but they weren't ready, so you felt Mohammed Shami's absence."
The cricketer-turned-commentator highlighted that the Indian team will be in great trouble if Jasprit Bumrah is rendered hors de combat. He said:
"It means, God forbid, if something happens to Jasprit Bumrah, we have seen him getting injured earlier because of his action, we will look left and right and we won't get quality bowlers like that."
Pathan added that seven to eight fast bowlers need to be prepared, whether it is through a talent hunt or by focusing a lot on the Ranji Trophy.
While acknowledging that the Indian Premier League helps in identifying talents and that the BCCI (Board of Control for Control in India) works a lot with the NCA (National Cricket Academy) behind the scenes, he stated that keeping a group of seamers ready needs to the biggest focus area.