'Would be unfair to change captain 3-4 months before T20 World Cup: Deep Dasgupta
Former India wicketkeeper-batsman Deep Dasgupta feels that the debate may finally come to an end and that the solution will arise after the forthcoming T20 World Cup.
Should Virat Kohli remain India captain across all formats, or should India employ different captains across all formats? This debate never seems to find its end date. Time and time again, due to various results across formats, Kohli's captaincy has come under the scanner and every time it happens, fans and pundits wonder if it would be better for someone to take over the captaincy mantle in the T20I format for India. Joining the discussion is former India player Deep Dasgupta.
Now that India have lost the World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand by eight wickets, the debate about Kohli's ability to lead the team in crucial situations has picked up again. With the T20 World Cup in near sight, questions are being asked if India should employ a different captain in the shortest format, with Kohli's inability to win an ICC trophy since taking over the captaincy.
Former India wicketkeeper-batsman Deep Dasgupta feels that the debate may finally come to an end and that the solution will arise after the forthcoming T20 World Cup. He added that according to him, opener Rohit Sharma is the frontrunner to replace Kohli as T20I captain.
Answering one such question on his YouTube channel, Deep Dasgupta argued that it would be 'unfair' on everyone to make the change now.
"I won't say 'high time' but I would say Rohit is definitely an option. I think a lot will depend on the T20 World Cup because as of now it's very difficult. You have just 3-4 months ahead of you, you will change the captaincy, which will mean that the team will have to align with the style of the new captain.
"Even though Rohit has led the side before, there's a difference between a stand-in skipper and a full-time skipper because as the former you don't want to make too many changes. When you are a full-time skipper, obviously, you want to make changes because you want to run the team your way," Dasgupta said.
The 44-year-old cricketer-turned-commentator further stated: "I believe it will be unfair on Rohit, the team, and also Virat now just 3-4 months before [the World Cup]. But I think the T20 World Cup will be very, very important in that aspect, because if something goes wrong there then Rohit is one of the main contenders for that spot."
Whether the change occurs or not remains to be seen. Even though there might not be any significant chances as of now, Sharma does have the credentials to be given a shot, having won the Indian Premier League (IPL) title five times as opposed to zero T20 World Cup or IPL titles won by Kohli.