Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli to retire soon? Ex-India selector drops '100%' prediction before BGT 2024-25

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are two of the modern-day greats of Indian cricket. Both the stalwarts have been playing international cricket for a long time now and have been a part of several memorable victories for Team India.

But their recent form has been a cause of concern. Both Rohit and Kohli have struggled with their respective forms recently in the New Zealand Test series. It has cast doubts about their performance in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Former India chief selector MSK Prasad opened up on their recent batting performances and their chances in the Test series against Australia. Prasad feels that both the legends will find it easier to bat against pace and bounce in Australian conditions.

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"Today, we are not struggling against pace and bounce" - MSK Prasad on Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli

During an interaction on RevSportz, MSK Prasad was asked if Kohli and Rohit are nearing the end of their career and he also spoke about the chances of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli scoring runs in Australia. Prasad reckons that both the batters will get back to form in the Test series against Australia since both of them are good against pace and bounce.

"Both the quality cricketers that we are talking about have always come up strong after a poor series. So, I firmly believe that Virat will be like a duck getting into water when he goes to Australia. So is Rohit. We saw Rohit getting tons and tons of runs in England and other countries. So, I have no doubt," Prasad said.

"I know that these two players are struggling a bit against the spin. Today, we are not struggling against pace and bounce, unlike the past. We are struggling against the quality spin, not struggling against the pace and bounce," he added.

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli delivered poor returns recently in the Test series against New Zealand. Rohit has scored 62 runs in two Tests at an average of 15.50 while Kohli has scored 88 runs at an average of 22.

Virat was dismissed by the left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner in both the innings while Rohit was dismissed by Santner in the second innings of the Pune Test.

"We are well-equipped to play pace and bounce" - MSK Prasad

Prasad further noted that there are bouncy conditions in India as well and Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be well suited to those conditions. Both of them are good players of pace and will enjoy the conditions in Australia.

"Probably in India also, we have some of the pitches which are on par with international standards in Australia, hard and bouncy. So, we are well-equipped to play pace and bounce, and I am 100 percent sure that will bring the best out of our players in Australia," Prasad explained.

Australia's bowling line-up in BGT 2024-25

Both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been great servants of Indian cricket across formats. However, their struggles against spin have been a cause of concern. In Australia, the conditions will be favorable to pace and bounce with Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, and Pat Cummins in the opposition fast bowling line-up.

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have played these quicks enough in their career and will know what to expect from them. However, Indian batters will also have to be wary of Nathan Lyon and his off-spin bowling.