New Delhi: Before the 3rd Test against England, Virat Kohli pulled out of the remaining three games, which resulted in him missing an entire home tour for the first time in his career.
Several speculations were made about his absence. Few reports suggested that his mother is ill, while a few even talked about Virat and Anushka expecting their second child.
Irrespective of the reason, Virat received fans’ support as they prayed for him and his family’s wellbeing. However, a section also criticised Virat and questioned BCCI whether big players are allowed to pick and choose the series they want to play.
In the latest events, BCCI extended their support to Virat, and secretary Jay Shah remarked that it is the first time in Kohli’s career that he asked for a leave.
“If somebody is asking for a personal leave in 15 years, then it is his right to ask for it. Virat is not that kind of a player that he would ask for a leave without any reason. We must back and trust our players. We will talk about Virat later,” said Shah while talking to India Today.
Shah made these remarks during a function while renaming the Saurashtra Cricket Stadium as Niranjan Shah Stadium, in honour of the administrator Niranjan Shah.
During the same event, Jay Shah confirmed that Rohit Sharma would lead the Indian side going into the T20 World Cup 2024.
“I have not made any comments about the 2023 World Cup, in which we lost the final in Ahmedabad. However, I can assure you that India will clinch the T20 World Cup in Barbados on June 29 under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy.”
Notably, Rohit did not play a single T20I game since the 2022 T20 World Cup exit until the recently concluded Afghanistan series. During the hitman’s absence, Hardik Pandya led the side and was even touted by some to lead the Men in Blue for the T20 World Cup 2024 which begins on June 2 in West Indies & USA.
“Rohit Sharma is now the captain across all formats. The decision was made collectively and the selectors are in agreement. Hardik Pandya will continue to serve as vice-captain for the T20 World Cup,”remarked Shah.
Hardik is currently recovering from the injury he suffered during the 2023 World Cup tie against Bangladesh. Talking about Hardik and Rohit, things are not well between the two as per media reports. The MI management sacked Rohit from the captain’s post and announced Hardik as his successor.