Indian cricket team skipper Rohit Sharma is all set to face an acid test as the team gets on with their final rounds of preparation for the ODI World Cup 2023 at home in October 2023.
Sharma, who was handed the captaincy post-Kohli failed to win a single ICC title as skipper, too failed in leading the team to success at the 2022 T20 World Cup and the World Test Championship final.
Now the comparison of Sharma is being done with legendary wicket-keeper batter and former skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. When the ODI World Cup took place in India in 2011, Dhoni led the team and India emerged champions beating Sri Lanka in the finals.
Previously India won the world cup in 1983 under legendary all-rounder and ex-skipper Kapil Dev. India were also runners-up at the 2003 Cricket World Cup, and semifinalists four times(1987, 1996, 2015, 2019).
With expectations growing for another world cup champion, Pakistan pace great Shoaib Akhtar opines Sharma should not have taken up the captaincy.
In a conversation with on ‘Backstage With Boria’, Shoaib Akhtar said, as quoted by NDTV, “There was once a guy who would take the entire team’s pressure upon himself – that was Dhoni. Only a captain can shield the entire team behind him. Rohit is a great guy, but he cripples during captaincy, he panics. These might be harsh words, but I don’t think he should have taken up the captaincy.”
“Even Virat Kohli isn’t as talented as him. The timing he has and the shots he can play…he is a classical batter – but was he made for captaincy? I question myself most of the time. Does he react well in most critical situations? I question myself. He should also be questioning it,” he added.
Meanwhile, to discuss the Asia Cup squad, the men’s senior selection committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), led by Ajit Agarkar, will meet in New Delhi on Monday.
As per the details, Sharma will also attend the meeting. As India is yet to announce their squad for Asia Cup and World Cup, citing concerns over the injury of their key players, Pakistan, Nepal, and Bangladesh have already named their Asia Cup squads. Also, England and Australia have announced the provisional squad for the World Cup 2023.
With PTI inputs.
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Updated: 19 Aug 2023, 11:15 PM IST