‘Rohit-Virat retirement will create leadership vacuum': Ravichandran Ashwin
Veteran Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin opened up on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's abrupt retirement, saying they left a leadership vacuum with them. India Test captain Rohit announced that he is calling it a day in the red ball cricket last week on May 7, before Virat dropped the bombshell of him retiring from Test cricket with immediate effect on Monday.
'Their retirements will definitely create a leadership vacuum. You can't buy experience, especially on tours like this. Virat's energy and Rohit's composure will be missed,' said Ashwin during a chat on his YouTube channel Ash ki baat.
'No matter how great a player is, even someone like Sachin Tendulkar had to retire one day. That's just how the game works,' he added.
Ashwin, on the timing of Rohit and Kohli's retirements, said both senior players had more to offer. 'There will be a sense of fulfilment, but I honestly felt Kohli definitely had one-two years of Test cricket left in him,' Ashwin said.
'Rohit, I felt would at least go on till the England Test series, because there's a leadership vacuum in the team. Tests has been the finest (format for India) in the last 10-12 years, but just for the sake of leadership, Rohit should've played till the England series, and if he'd performed, he could've carried on and given some more leadership,' he added on Rohit.
He even went on to say Rohit could have matched Virat's achievements in the longest format.
'Jitna Virat Kohli ka hua, utna Rohit Sharma ka bhi ho sakta tha (What Virat achieved, Rohit could have done too), but because Rohit missed a very-very crucial debut in Nagpur, otherwise I have no doubts in my head….he couldn't play 100 Tests because of that particular gap that he had in his Test career,' he said.
Ashwin also backed Jasprit Bumrah for the captaincy role, saying the ace pacer deserves the captaincy role for India in the Test format.
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