The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the team management are likely to meet with both the skippers, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, in the next couple of days to talk about their future in the T20I International Cricket.
It is believed that the duo have made their intentions clear about their availability for selection but will be persuaded to rethink their decision. Once Chetan Sharma’s new-look selection panel meets, the matter will be up for discussion, the Indian Express reported.
After the World Cup, the selectors picked a young team led by Hardik Pandya for a couple of T20 Internationals against Sri Lanka and New Zealand. Although he is determined in becoming the team’s long-term captain, the Board of Control has not named him any confirmation as such.
The Board decided to give the young players an opportunity to play in the upcoming T20 World Cup, which will be held in 2024. It also wanted to keep the senior players’ workload in check during the upcoming 50-over World Cup im October-November.
While talking about the first One-Day International against Sri Lanka, which will be held in Guwahati, India’s captain, Rohit Sharma, said that he still wants to play T20s for the country. However, he noted that the schedule for the World Cup, which is a 50-over tournament, precludes playing all formats.
He also noted that the team management had taken into account the players’ workload and decided to give them enough time to rest. Despite the limited number of Twenty20 Internationals that the country has this year, he still wants to play the format.
It is believed that the Board is not planning on including the duo in the team’s plans for the upcoming T20 tournaments. The Board prefers players who can fit the playing style of the shortest format and is looking for a completely different team. In the past couple of World Cup tournaments, India experimented with a conservative approach.
In the upcoming World Cup, India is planning on adopting a more aggressive approach with the bat. This change in strategy was initially tried during the tournament in Australia, but the Board decided to put it on hold. Hardik Pandya has also made it clear that the team should adopt a bold approach and that the selectors should be able to identify the right individuals for the tournament.
In addition to the experienced trio, the Board also believes that the young players, such as Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Shubman Gill are capable of playing a more significant role in the upcoming T20Is then Rohit or Kohli.