Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli will still make my T20 World Cup team

A month into IPL 15, the big story has been the niggardly form of India’s two pre-eminent batsmen. True, eight defeats, and no win, for Mumbai Indians is extraordinary. Rohit and Virat being in the doldrums for such a long period is no less unexpected and unusual

If the T20 World Cup squad were to be chosen today, would you find a place in it for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli?

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli celebrate (PTI/File Photo)

A month into IPL 15, the big story has been the niggardly form of India’s two pre-eminent batsmen. True, eight defeats without a win so far for Mumbai Indians is an extraordinary occurrence. But Rohit and Virat being in the doldrums for such a long period is bizarrely unusual too.

In eight matches each so far, Rohit has 153 runs and is 30th in run aggregate. Kohli, with 119 runs in eight matches, is 41st. Neither has made a half century. These are astonishing stats for such high-quality batsmen.

Rohit’s poor form has had a direct bearing on Mumbai’s fortunes. With Kieron Pollard’s finishing prowess also muted, Mumbai have struggled to set or chase scores.

While Kohli’s dismal sequence of scores, including back-to-back `golden ducks’, has not had an adverse effect on his team, for RCB to make a serious bid for a maiden title it is imperative that Kohli’s bat starts talking quickly. And loudly!

A barren run of 100 matches across formats and tournaments without a century, when he was earlier scoring these with ridiculous ease, makes Kohli more newsworthy than Rohit. What’s going wrong with a batsman regarded as the best till recently is the subject of hot debate across the cricket world.

Former India coach Ravi Shastri, who worked with him for several years, believes Kohli needs a break from the game because his `brain’s fried’! RCB coach Sanjay Bangar says a big knock from Kohli is around the corner. Between these divergent views are hundreds of others making for a cacophony of assessment and analysis.

Since there is no formulaic escape from lean trots, I’ll stick to a truism and say Kohli will have to work his way out through instinct, gut and skill to win the battle in the middle. But before all these, he must win the battle in his own mind.

Which brings me back to the question: should Rohit and Kohli be in the India T20 team if it was chosen today?

In my view, without doubt. I’ll admit this is in deference to their fantastic talent and achievements, but equally important, also to their rich and varied experience of different conditions, pitches, opponents. And pertinently, also not being unnerved by a `big occasion’ like the World Cup. These are hard-earned virtues that cannot be diminished by a temporary slump in form, but come with a caveat. No player is indispensable. Moreover, the fight for places in the India team is becoming intense. Rohit and Virat have to start firing soonest.

Aside from these two, and to an extent Ravindra Jadeja who hasn’t looked in his elements as batsman or bowler, most India prospects have done well. But some of the most compelling performances have come from the least expected quarters.

Umran Malik, 20, the rookie tearaway fast bowler who has rattled batsmen with 150kph thunderbolts, has put himself on the radar of the selectors. So too 36-year-old Dinesh Karthik, whose derring-do, amazing self-belief, and unabashed desire to be part of the World Cup squad has produced some of the most exhilarating knocks in the tournament yet.

Wrist spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, who had dropped off the horizon some years back, have made stellar impact. Chahal leads the wickets tally, and Kuldeep isn’t far behind. Whether this means a revival of their international careers remains to be seen, but the threat from youngsters liked Rahul Chahar and Ravi Bishnoi seems to have been stymied for the moment.

It must be remembered that IPL is essentially a domestic tournament and performances must be judged accordingly. Moreover, the second half is still to be played in which dramatic twists, turns, upheavals et al are possible, so very little can be taken for granted. But the first half has thrown up a promising scenario for the selectors and chief coach Rahul Dravid as the T20 World Cup nears. Now, if only Rohit and Virat could hit top gear.