"That doesn't mean that they have moved on"- Sunil Gavaskar explains why Rohit Sharma & Virat Kohli have been left out from NZ T20Is

Former Indian legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar believes big names like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul are still in the reckoning for the 2024 T20 World Cup, despite them not being picked for the T20Is against New Zealand.

There has been a lot of talk about the new selection committee opting for fresh faces over experienced players. But Gavaskar feels that the big names have just been rested from the T20Is so they remain fresh for the all-important Test series against Australia starting from February 9.

Speaking to Sports Tak, here's what Sunil Gavaskar had to say:

"I feel with the T20 World Cup in 2024, the new selection committee wants to have a look at some new faces. But that doesn't mean that they have moved on from Rohit and Virat. If these players show incredible form throughout the year, they have to play in the T20 World Cup. I feel that the 10 days of rest that they will get ahead of the crucial Test series against Australia is necessary."

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Sunil Gavaskar on Virat Kohli's 'risk-free' approach

Sunil Gavaskar believes Virat Kohli's role is to anchor India's innings and not take too many risks. However, the star batter was still able to maintain a healthy strike rate, bringing up his hundred in just 85 balls on Sunday.

Gavaskar feels the reason for the high strike rate is Kohli's ability to run hard between wickets and also find boundaries at regular intervals. He stated:

"The likes of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer take a lot more risks in their batting and sometimes perish playing lifted shots. Virat Kohli plays more risk-free cricket and plays his shots along the ground till he reaches his hundred. What's amazing is that despite this risk-free approach, Kohli's strike rate hasn't dropped off as it has been above 100 in both his hundreds in the series. This shows how well he finds the gaps and also how quick he is in running between the wickets."

Indian captain Rohit Sharma was also looking good on Sunday but was dismissed for 42, getting caught in the deep while trying to send the ball into the stands. On this, Gavaskar added:

"Rohit plays a lot more attacking shots and it's natural that sometimes he loses his wicket in a bid to up the ante. He did score 83 in the first ODI, but was unlucky to get dismissed as he chopped one onto his stumps. If India want to do well in the ODIs against New Zealand and Australia and also in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, their captain and opening batter Rohit Sharma has to score big."

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's form will be crucial to India's chances of winning the Border-Gavaskar Trophy convincingly.