Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma ordered to visit Pakistan for Champions Trophy for once-in-a-lifetime experience

Former Pakistan cricketer Kamran Akmal believes that Indian players Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli should visit Pakistan before hanging up their boots. He said that both Indian stars should experience a fan following in the neighboring country as they will witness their huge popularity.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are two of the biggest names in the cricketing World. They have achieved a lot in their career and are two of the main reasons behind the dominance of the India National Cricket Team in all three formats of the game for more than the last decade.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have played cricket in almost all parts of the world. However, one place where they are yet to play together is Pakistan. The duo might end their career without playing in the Asian country. But there's a possibility that they might play in Pakistan for the first time as the Champions Trophy 2025 is set to be played there.

The Champions Trophy 2025 is scheduled to be played in February-March. But there are very less chances that India might travel to Pakistan for the tournament. There can be the possibility of a hybrid model with India playing its matches in UAE and Sri Lanka while the rest of the games will be played in Pakistan.

Kamran Akmal said that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have a huge fan following, and they stated that they would experience a different kind of aura in Pakistan. Speaking to the Times of India, he explained:

"Virat and Rohit should visit Pakistan before they retire. These two are stars of world cricket, travelling across the globe to play the game. Every single fan loves them.

"They have a massive fan base due to their batting and match-winning performances. The fan following they will experience in Pakistan will surpass anything they've seen elsewhere."

Virat Kohli is a role model for many around the world, Rohit is the World-cup winning captain - Kamran Akmal

Kamran Akmal further pointed out how Virat Kohli has been a role model for many around the world and also highlighted the impact of Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah in world cricket. He explained:

"Virat is a role model for many around the world, Rohit is the World Cup-winning captain, and Bumrah is currently the best pacer in the world.

"When players like Virat, Rohit and Bumrah visit Pakistan, it will evoke unique feelings in every fan. Virat has visited Pakistan during his under-19 days but he wasn't as popular then."

Kamran Akmal further added that Virat Kohli will be seeing huge popularity in Pakistan and will have great support there. While elaborating on the same, he stressed:

"If Virat visits Pakistan now, he will truly see his popularity there. He will receive a different kind of support in Pakistan. No cricketer is more popular than Virat in Pakistan. He has a bigger fan following than any other cricketer in the world. Pakistan fans love Virat, Rohit and Bumrah more than any of their cricket team players."

Virat Kohli has earlier visited Pakistan during his U19 days. But since then, due to the political tensions between the two nations, both the teams haven't played each other in bilateral series. They last played in a bilateral series in 2012-13 but that took place in India.