Simon Doull suggests Rohit Sharma to follow Virat Kohli’s example and give up Mumbai Indians captaincy (Sportzpix)
Simon Doull suggests Rohit Sharma to follow Virat Kohli’s example and give up Mumbai Indians captaincy
Former New Zealand international Simon Doull feels that Rohit Sharma should think about giving up the captaincy of Mumbai Indians and follow the same example of Virat Kohli.
The cricketer-turned-commentator felt Kohli did the right thing by stepping down as RCB captain, and suggested Rohit to follow a similar path to take the pressure off the ‘Hitman”s shoulders.
Apart from leading Mumbai Indians, Rohit is also India’s captain across formats and the 36-year-old has had a torrid season in IPL 2023 so far, scoring just 257 runs in 13 innings.
Dole feels Rohit will be ‘freed up’ by giving up the captaincy of Mumbai Indians, just like how Kohli has excelled since giving up the RCB captaincy.
“I was a big fan of his [Virat Kohli] Relinquishing the captaincy of RCB, as I am with Rohit, now that he is India’s captain. I think this is the tournament where he needs to break free and just play,” Doull said on Cricbuzz.
While the five-time IPL champions are well in contention for the playoffs, the captain has blown hot and cold, while Kohli, on the other hand, had a tumultuous season last year under Du Plessis’ captaincy, but is looking to shine in IPL 2023. Went and also scored a century. Against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday.
Read this also ‘Hot Or Not’: Cricket Broadcast Touches A New Low During SRH vs RCB Pre-match Show During IPL 2023
Simon Doull further elaborated on how RCB would have planned the captaincy succession after Kohli, and how they got Faf at a decent price in the IPL 2022 auction for Rs 7 crore.
“When I talked about Virat and captaincy, it was as if all the pressure was on him. Indian captaincy, three formats, RCB captaincy, and just to see it taken away, and it was never going to go to anyone he didn’t respect. So there are only two or three players in world cricket who could have gone to Bangalore and become captain,” the veteran said.
Doull continued, “They bought Faf for good money. The case was already there, and before they went into the program for him, he had to have the seal of approval. So, he gives up the captaincy, she gives up the approval.” Stamps, and they got Faf.”
Read this also Shane Watson regrets the absence of home advantage in a poor season for Delhi Capitals
Both Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore are embroiled in a tight race to qualify for the IPL 2023 playoffs and both the sides need to win their remaining final games to confirm their progress into the knockouts.