Ruturaj Gaikwad kicked aside! Brad Hogg names two players who can replace Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma in Indian T20I team

Former Australian cricketer Brad Hogg talked about the replacement of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the Indian T20I team. He said that management should back Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill as the duo can form a formidable pair for the next 10 years.

The India T20I team is now all set to go through the transition. The senior players in Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja have retired from the format. They ended their career on high and hung their boots up after the India National Cricket Team went on to win the T20 World Cup 2024.

The youngsters have already been included in the team as the India team is in Zimbabwe for the five-match T20I series. The side will be captained by Shubman Gill and IPL performers Abhishek Sharma, Riyan Parag, Tushar Deshpande, Dhruv Jurel and others have been included in the team for the series.

The series also marks the road for the T20 World Cup 2026 as all the eyes would be on youngsters as to how would they go about their business in the Indian colors. It also will be an opportunity for the young guns to fill in the shoes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the team and assert their authority.

Brad Hogg believes that Abhishek Sharma will be one of the perfect replacements for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli as the left-hander bats aggressively and in today's cricket someone like him is needed. He stated that along with him, someone with stability is needed. Speaking in a video posted on his Twitter account, he explained:

"India taking on Zimbabwe and it's going to be a new look Indian team but there are two positions that are up for grabs in the main 11 and that's the opening combination. Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma have retired so who is going to take that spot? So this tour should open up a door or two to give a bit of an indication and opportunity for two players to take it. I definitely have Abhishek Sharma up there in the top two.

"He's aggressive. In the IPL 2024, he had a strike rate of over 200 opening the batting. At an average of 38 he doesn't chew up too many balls, he doesn't waste time. You need that aggressive player with the way the game's changed but you need to have him batting with someone with a little bit more conservativeness about their approach."

I think Gill has more potential than Gaikwad- Brad Hogg

Brad Hogg stated that along with Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill would be a perfect pick at the top. He rated the stand-in skipper higher than Ruturaj Gaikwad. Elaborating on the same, he elaborated:

"Someone who can bat through the innings and have that ability to really power home out the back and it's either Gaikwad or Gill. I'm looking at the potential. I think Gill has more potential than Gaikwad. He's a lot younger as well so there's a lot more to see in the future.

"So for me in this Zimbabwe tour I'd be looking for an open combination of Abhishek Sharma and Gill, a quality opening partnership that might be able to work together for the next 10 years."

Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill are likely to open in the series against Zimbabwe. It remains to be seen how will they go in the series.