Former India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin on Wednesday strongly criticised the BCCI’s handling of the Virat Kohli–Rohit Sharma ODI saga, questioning the board’s “lack of communication and sensitivity” over the issue. Amid ongoing speculation on whether Kohli and Rohit feature in India’s ODI World Cup plans, with chief selector Ajit Agarkar remaining non-committal, Ashwin asked why the selectors did not communicate their roadmap for the 2027 edition when the duo announced their T20I retirement after the 2024 T20 World Cup.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ashwin did not delve into the right and wrong aspect of the speculation on Kohli and Rohit’s future and on the selection committee’s decision to name Shubman Gill as the new ODI captain, but rather stressed the need for better communication with players who are in the twilight of their career.
The veteran bowler, who retired from international cricket last December, further explained that Indian cricket lacks a proper transition plan, with minimal knowledge transfer and communication between senior players, such as Kohli and Rohit, and emerging talents, leaving no roadmap for handling pressure, injuries, or leadership handovers effectively.
“On one side is selection, on the other side is Kohli and Rohit. These are two sides of the same coin. Upon examining the selection, it is clear that the selectors are moving forward. However, in this process, they have two players who are nearing the end of their careers. However, one thing I would like to mention is that you need to improve the way you handle such players. It is very easy to say that they have grown old and they should retire. One of the reasons we feel this way is that we see many young players in the IPL performing well, and we believe they can replace these experienced players. However, during this process, one thing we often overlook is solid communication and knowledge transfer. I request that this be addressed in the future,” he said.
“Knowledge transfer, or KT, doesn’t mean Kohli and Rohit will be teaching Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma new shots; rather, it will show them how to handle pressure situations and deal with injuries. The way Kohli and Rohit batted in the 2023 ODI World Cup, they have nothing to prove, but does the KT have any space? There is actually no space for KT in Indian cricket because there is no transition phase. Rahul Dravid was a coach at one time, then Gautam Gambhir took over. We did not have any template that, after Dravid, Gambhir would be the coach, so taking a KT from Dravid was not possible. And after Gambhir, for whom will the KT go? If there is no roadmap from the management side, this cannot happen from the players’ side.”
