Gautam Gambhir labeled 'U-turn man' as Kris Srikkanth hails Virat Kohli, claims Rohit Sharma 'will faint in SA' over batters' 2027 WC participation

Former Indian chief selector Kris Srikkanth lashed out at the new head coach of the Indian cricket team, Gautam Gambhir, for taking a U-turn from his statements regarding Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. The former Indian batter said that it seems like Gambhir got the job to sing praise for Rohit and Kohli after facing heat for criticizing the duo.

Srikkanth recalled how Gambhir was firing bullets at Kohli and Rohit when they were not scoring and even said that he doesn’t see them in his team for the T20 World Cup 2024. Now, after becoming India's head coach, he flipped by saying that he is hoping they will be fit for the ODI World Cup 2027.

Kris Srikkanth blasts Gautam Gambhir for U-turn on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma

Kris Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel Cheeky Cheeka: “Gautam Gambhir is most hip-hopper. He is a real U-turn man. Before the T20 World Cup 2024, he was saying if Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma do not perform, they will not sit in my team. Then he took a U-turn now, saying there is no player like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. After becoming head coach, he said that both have a lot of cricket left and hopefully they will fit for the 2027 World Cup.”

The former chief selector slammed Gambhir for talking about the 2027 World Cup just after becoming the head coach. However, Srikkanth is confident that Kohli can play the 2027 ODI World Cup in South Africa, thanks to his tip-notch fitness, but he is not sure about Rohit Sharma.

Srikkanth further explained, “You are playing like a fool. Will anything happen in the 2027 World Cup? Why are you telling me this now? Virat Kohli's an absolute champion, and I don't have any doubt on his fitness. Rohit Sharma's mindset is also definitely good. Virat will play in the 2027 World Cup, okay? Rohit Sharma, if you say 2027 World Cup, I am not sure.

He is a good player, but his age is 37 presently, and the next ODI World Cup is three more years ahead. He will be 40 years old then. I mean, unless you are a super-fit person like MS Dhoni or Sachin Tendulkar, you can’t play World Cup at 40s. Yeah, Virat Kohli could play in the 2027 World Cup, in my opinion, for sure. But for Rohit, Mr. Gambhir, you went overboard; he will faint in South Africa.”

It was Mumbai Indians (MI) effect: Kris Srikkanth blasts Indian selectors for not making Hardik Pandya T20I captain

Meanwhile, Srikkanth said that Indian chief selectors Ajit Agarkar and Gambhir are giving valid reasons for not choosing Hardik Pandya as the T20I captain. He mentioned how Agarkar said that the feedback from the dressing room played a major role in appointing Suryakumar Yadav as India’s T20I captain.

The former Indian batter further went on to question Gambhir-Agarkar, “Is it the Indian dressing room or the Mumbai-Indian dressing room?” He has openly said that Pandya was not made India’s T20I captain for whatever has happened in the IPL 2024, where he replaced Rohit as Mumbai India's (MI) captain.

In his criticism, Srikkanth said that they could have said Mumbai-Indian dressing room, but they have said the feedback from the dressing room, which is wrong, as it was not Indian dressing room feedback. He said that it was about the Indian team captaincy, so the feedback should have been taken from the national team, not the Mumbai-Indian dressing room.

The former Indian chief selector is feeling really bad for Pandya, saying they should have given a valid reason as he was a proven captain, so he is not convinced with the reasons proved by Agarkar and Gambhir at all.