Former India opener Gautam Gambhir spoke on Indian captain Virat Kohli and his deputy Rohit Sharma. Gambhir feels Rohit Sharma has more impact in white-ball cricket compared to the skipper. However, the former opener believes Kohli will end up scoring more runs than Rohit.
“For me, white-ball cricket is all about impact. Kohli will end up getting many more runs than Rohit, and Kohli is among the greatest right now, but Rohit has an edge over Kohli because of the impact he has,” Gambhir said.
Gambhir added, “I think Rohit is the best white-ball cricketer in the world right now. He is not the greatest overall but at the moment he is the best. He is the only player to have hit 3 ODI double hundreds, 5 World Cup hundreds (in one edition) and he is also the only player, who once gets past 100-run mark, people say that he missed a double century.”
ALSO READ: Brett Lee Shares Why He Remembers Rohit Sharma by the Sound of Bat
Talking further about the duo, the 38-year-old said, “It is very difficult to compare both of them. Virat Kohli is unbelievable. His stats prove that. But when your reputation is such that when you get out after a hundred, people say he has missed out on double hundred, that speaks volumes about you.”
The cricketer-turned-politician credits MS Dhoni for Rohit’s successful career. He says, “Where Rohit is today, it is because of MS Dhoni. One good thing about MS was that he always kept Rohit in the talks. Even if was not part of the team, he was always part of the group. He never let him get sidelined.”
He added, “You can talk about the selection committee and team management, but if you do not have the backing from your captain than it is all useless. Everything is in the hands of the captain. MS Dhoni had backed Rohit Sharma over a period of time, I do not think any player has been given such support.”
ALSO READ: Mohammad Asif Curses PCB For Not Saving His Career, Like Others
Rohit Sharma’s career turned around in 2013 when Dhoni promoted him as an opener. Gambhir says that Kohli and Rohit should groom youngsters in the current team like Dhoni did with them.
Gautam Gambhir said, “Rohit is the prime example of how a player’s fortunes can turn around if he is nurtured by the seniors. I hope the young cricketers in Shubman Gill or Sanju Samson get similar kind of support. “And now when Rohit is a senior, I expect him to back youngsters.”
