With Virat Kohli set to relinquish the captaincy after Team India’s campaign in the 2021 edition of ICC World T20, his deputy Rohit Sharma has emerged as a frontrunner to lead the Asian giants in their forthcoming home assignment. After the end of the ICC World T20 2021, the former world champions will host Kane Williamson’s New Zealand for a bilateral T20I series from November 17th to November 21 this year.
At a time when multiple reports suggested that key campaigners of the men’s senior team will be rested for the New Zealand T20Is, veteran opener Rohit is reportedly in talks to captain the Indian national team for the bilateral series between India and the Black Caps. India’s current T20I captain Kohli had earlier confirmed that the ongoing World Cup will be his last tournament as the captain of the Asian giants in the shortest format.
According to a report filed by news agency PTI, it has been learned that Kohli’s future with Team India as the captain of the side in the 50-over format will be discussed during the upcoming meeting between the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) leadership and national selectors. Though India will not play any One Day International (ODI) series in the 2021 season, Kohli is tipped to get replaced as the white-ball captain across the two formats.
“First things first, the squads for New Zealand series need to be decided. Rohit hasn’t yet said that he doesn’t want to lead in the T20 Internationals against New Zealand. And why would he not want to lead? It’s his first series as full-time T20 captain,” a senior BCCI official told the news agency when asked whether Rohit will take rest for the New Zealand series or not.
The report also added that key campaigners Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Hardik Pandya are likely to be dropped when India lock horns New Zealand for a three-match T20I series after the World Cup. Chennai Super Kings (CSK) opener Ruturaj Gaikwad, who won the Orange Cap in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, is in the fray for a national call-up alongside former Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper Shreyas Iyer.
Sunrisers Hyderabad’s (SRH) fast bowling sensation Umran Malik and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer also have an outside chance of making to the white-ball squad. As per the report, Axar Patel, Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Chahar are likely to return for the T20I series while Shubman Gill, Mayank Agarwal, Umesh Yadav can feature in India’s Test squad against New Zealand.
