Saba Karim has stated that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma need to keep outside talk aside and work for the betterment of the game for the country as well. However, Rohit has been ruled out of the Test series against South Africa owing to a hamstring injury that he has sustained during practice.
And, few reports suggested that Kohli wants to skip the ODI series during the same tour, which led to speculation that they don’t want to play under each other. His comments came as the board has named Rohit Sharma as the ODI captain of the team, replacing Virat Kohli. During a discussion on India News, Saba Karim was asked if Sourav Ganguly’s recent statement has added fuel to it, to which he responded: “I feel in the end both players, especially Virat Kohli at this moment, will have to understand what is good for the team. What Sourav has said or someone else has said, how does that make a difference.”
ALSO READ: Fans react as the first Test between INDvNZ ended in a draw
He continued: “This should not happen. Rohit Sharma’s case is different, he has got a hamstring injury and the BCCI has made an official release. So there is no doubt there. The reports that are coming say that he was practicing at the BKC and he had a hamstring pull, because of which he got ruled out.”
He further added that the responsibility is on the board to make sure that proper communication happens with every player.
Saba Karim again said: “But the reports that are coming about Virat, that he has asked permission from the BCCI. In the end, I feel it depends on the BCCI if they give him the permission or not. The communication channel with the players should always remain open, whether it is from the BCCI, team management or selectors.”
READ HERE: Wasim Jaffer names batting-order for 2nd Test vs New Zealand
Saba Karim again added that the reported differences between Kohli and Rohit send the wrong signals and that the board needs to deal with it well. However, the board has confirmed that Virat Kohli will play the ODI series against South Africa.
“If we keep the communication channel open, such things will not happen. If this is happening, I don’t think good signs are going towards the players or the team. If the BCCI takes hard steps, which I feel they should, then only all these things will be resolved properly,” Saba Karim concluded.
