I think they should go back and play some domestic cricket: Ravi Shastri on Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma

The home and away series against New Zealand and Australia, respectively, have been underwhelming for Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. The ace batters have looked out of sorts in the red-ball format in the past several matches. Both of them have been under the scanner of journalists and ex-cricketers, who have not shied away from expressing their views on the two veterans of Indian cricket. 

Former Indian cricketer-turned-commentator, Ravi Shastri, thought that the two should revisit the domestic circuit and supported his take with two solid reasons. 

“If there’s a gap for them, I think they should go back and play some domestic cricket and see how it is. Because when you play Test match cricket for that length of time, it’s important to play domestic cricket for two reasons: you’re abreast with the current generation (and) you can contribute to that younger generation with your experience. And more importantly, you get to play spin more than you will never play. So, if you see India as recorded, India on turning tracks is not the greatest. If you have quality spinners in the opposition, they can trouble you. And they have troubled India,” shared Shastri in The ICC Review.

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They would know how hungry they are: Shastri

However, Shastri left the onus to go ahead with the same on them. This is in sharp contrast with the consensus for the time being. 

“They might have been lucky to get over a couple of series, but you saw how New Zealand exposed them before coming to Australia. So I would leave it on that. And plus, it’s the hunger and desire. When you’re in your 30s, one is 36, the other is 38. They would know how hungry they are,” added Shastri.

Apart from a few players, almost everyone looked tentative. The 0-3 whitewash against New Zealand was the first time India were clean-swept in a three-match Test series at home. The recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy went in the favour of the hosts by a 3-1 margin, with India succumbing to the title after a decade.

Apart from a century in the second innings of the series opener, Kohli could only muster 90 runs in the remaining eight innings. As for Rohit, he scored only 31 runs in the five innings he featured.