Should Rohit Sharma replace Virat Kohli as new Indian Test skipper? Ricky Ponting comments

Virat Kohli is no longer the Indian skipper, having stepped down from the role even in Test cricket this month. As the Indian cricket team hunts for a new captain, some names are doing rounds. Meanwhile, limited-overs skipper Rohit Sharma is being backed up, while legendary former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting has endorsed him.

While KL Rahul is also one such name, he has failed to deliver as the captain in the four games he has led the side so far, while he needs some grooming for the future. Besides, the likes of Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, Ajinkya Rahane and others are also being discussed as potential candidates by the fans. However, Ponting feels Rohit is the right fit considering the current squad.

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“If I go back to what I said at the start about being on top of your game when you take over a captaincy role, then it is pretty hard to argue after what he has done with his Test cricket in the last 2-3 years. He has played as well as anybody in the world through that period, and we know how good he is as a white-ball player,” Ponting was quoted as saying to the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Speaking on Rahul and Rahane, Ponting reckoned, “He [Rahane] hasn’t had his best period with the bat in Tests, but we saw what he could do leadership-wise in the series against Australia last summer. I don’t know KL Rahul well, but what I hear about him is he is a terrific guy, and he’s playing very well and starting to put together a perfect Test record, particularly overseas, which is impressive.”

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Ponting also expressed his surprise at Kohli stepping down from the role since he had a chat with him during IPL 2021, where he seemed to be confident of continuing to lead the team for long. He admitted that Kohli considered stepping down from the white-ball role to focus on the red-ball since he loved the latter so much. He also compared Kohli’s decision to his own, as he had once admitted to having stepped down from the role a little early.

“So, I think there is potentially a shelf-life for international cricket captains and even coaches. Virat’s been there for close to seven years now. If there’s a country in the world that’s the most difficult to captain, it’s probably India because of just how popular the game is and how much every single Indian loves to see the fortunes of the Indian cricket team, whether they are good or bad. You weigh all those things up,” Ponting concluded.