Kapil Dev calls Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli servants, but there’s a catch

Former Indian captain and all-rounder Kapil Dev heaped praise on Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma for their contributions to the national cricket team across all three formats. Kapil Dev stated that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been huge servants of Indian cricket, describing them as irreplaceable in Indian cricket.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma announced their retirement from T20I cricket following the Men in Blue's victory in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 in the Caribbean. The Indian cricket team secured a seven-run win over South Africa in a thrilling match in Barbados on June 29, ending their 11-year ICC trophy drought.

Virat played a match-winning knock of 76 runs to help the team reach a competitive total. The former Indian skipper was named "Player of the Match" for his batting performance. Meanwhile, Rohit became the third Indian captain after Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni to guide the Indian cricket team to a World Cup victory.

No One Can Take Virat Kohli And Rohit Sharma's Place - Kapil Dev

Speaking on the sidelines of the Trinity Golf Championship League second edition curtain-raiser event, Kapil Dev stated that no one can replace Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in any format. Kapil likened their impact to that of Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni.

“No one can take Virat and Rohit’s place in the Indian team in any format. They have been a huge servant of Indian cricket, and it was a happy farewell for them. The stature that Virat has made of himself in all formats, he will surely be missed in T20Is. Both are the same as Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni. They are irreplaceable,” Kapil was quoted as saying by IANS.

Virat Kohli made his T20I debut against Zimbabwe in June 2010. Kohli scored 4,188 runs in 125 T20Is at an average of 48.7 and a strike rate of 137.04, including one century and 38 half-centuries. He won all major ICC white-ball tournaments, including the ODI World Cup, Champions Trophy, and T20 World Cup.

Rohit Sharma started his career with the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007. He concluded his T20I career as the highest run-scorer in the format. He scored 4,231 runs in 159 matches at an average of 31.34 and a strike rate of 140.89. The right-handed batter (5) holds the record for the most centuries in T20Is.

The former MI skipper played a crucial role in India’s first T20 World Cup win in 2007. He led the team to their second title as captain. He is the only Indian to win two T20 World Cup titles. He holds records as the most-capped T20I player.

Rohit may return for India in the three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka next month in Colombo. The BCCI will announce the squad for this series on Thursday, July 18, including India's permanent T20I captain. Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav are in the race to replace Rohit as skipper of the Indian T20I team.

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