3 Players Rohit Sharma didn't back but Virat Kohli did

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are two of the biggest stars in Indian cricket at the moment. There is always a lot of comparisons between the captain vice-captain duo. In fact, there have been calls for Rohit to take over as a full-time captain in the shorter formats.

Sharma has led in the ODI and T20I formats when Kohli has been rested or injured. Both players have found success as captains. However, they have backed their own set of players. While the core of the side has remained the same, like most captains, both these players have backed certain players.

Thus, here we analyze three players who Rohit Sharma hasn’t backed as captain but Virat Kohli did.

1. KL Rahul

There are very few players who’ve got the backing like KL Rahul has got in the last couple of years. Virat Kohli has backed to the tilt but the Karnataka batsman has failed to make it count. Rahul has been struggling in the longest format for a while now and it was only after the Caribbean tour, he was dropped.

In T20I cricket, he has very good numbers and yet it’s hard for him to break into the side. Even when Kohli is absent (rested or injured), the opener doesn’t get a lot of chances. Despite proving that he is more than capable of batting at any position in the top four, Rahul always tends to get discarded.

He has played just 10 games (all T20Is) under Rohit Sharma over the span of two overs. In the same period, under Kohli, Rahul has played 10 T20Is in addition to 14 Tests and 12 ODIs. Kohli has often spoken highly of Rahul and has backed him quite a bit.

2. Vijay Shankar

Vijay Shankar has played most of his cricket for India in 2019 and it has been an up and down year for him. It was under Rohit Sharma that Shankar made his international debut in the Nidahas Trophy 2018. However, apart from that tournament, Shankar has played only five other games under Rohit (only one ODI).

Under Kohli, Shankar got consistent chances in the ODI format which helped him seal a place in the World Cup squad. Be it with the bat or ball, the Tamil Nadu all-rounder didn’t always have eye-catching numbers but he did make an impact.

Kohli rates him highly and once said, “Vijay Shankar brings in a lot to the team and hence, I am delighted to have him.” The Indian captain also threw his weight behind him when he consistently failed to convert his starts. Rohit Sharma hasn’t had big opportunities but he hasn’t included Shankar in the team on a few occasions.

3. Ravindra Jadeja

Ravindra Jadeja belongs to the class of the 2008 Under-19 World Cup. He slowly came up the ranks and became India’s premier spinner in all formats. Jadeja was backed to the tilt and given every chance of succeeding by MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli has carried that forward.

Jadeja may not enjoy the same confidence as he did under Dhoni but Kohli rates the Saurashtra all-rounder very highly as well. In fact, Jadeja has been Kohli’s fall-back option many times across formats. But the left-hander hasn’t played a lot under Rohit Sharma.

It is surprising to see that Jadeja has featured in only three games when Rohit has been the captain. All those three games came during the Asia Cup last year. Every time, Rohit has led the T20I side, Jadeja has invariably found himself out of the team as well. Thus, Kohli’s backing of Jadeja has been way more than Rohit’s.