The international cricket futures of India's Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have been talking points over the last few months.
Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting believes that Team India seniors Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma still has a lot to offer in international cricket despite questions being asked regarding their futures. India endured a forgettable tour of Australia earlier in the 2024-25 season, where they lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series 1-3.
Virat Kohli, who scored a century in the first Test in Perth, endured forgettable outings with the bat in the remaining Tests to finish with 190 runs. Rohit Sharma, on the other hand, scored just 31 runs from five innings. Rohit Sharma, however, would go on to guide the Men in Blue to the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy title by beating New Zealand in the final.
While Rohit played a crucial knock of 76 in the final, Kohli aggregated 218 runs in the tournament, including an unbeaten century against Pakistan and a knock of 84 against Australia.
“I have been on record about Virat to say: ‘You can’t write off quality players’. They’re champions for a reason and always find a way to come good,” Ponting was quoted as saying by the Indian Express at the Idea Exchange programme.
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“At different times in the last couple of years, Virat has been able to do that when he is getting in a hole. He is a high-quality player and, maybe Rohit is a bit the same. Test cricket is the thing that is becoming harder for them right now. Rohit has made it clear he’s going nowhere in the 50-over game. Virat is the best white-ball player I have ever seen. I will never write those guys off,” added the ODI World Cup-winning former skipper.
Ponting also revealed that he spoke to Rahul Dravid when the former India skipper following one of their tours to Australia.
“We could all see he was battling, and there was a lot of media talk, and it was all wearing him down. Rahul and I have always got along really well. We were fierce competitors, both No.3 batters for our countries for a long time. For players like that, the class and quality doesn’t leave. It sometimes gets buried under a lot of other stuff, and certain people can’t find their way out of those holes,” he said.
“I just had a chat with him and said, ‘Look, forget about all the external stuff, believe in yourself, and go back to the things that have made you a good player. If you focus on that and not worry about the little things, I am sure you can finish off your career on a strong note.’ That’s all I said. He went away and did that and guess what? When I was at the end of my career, I got the same message back from him. He was the first on the phone and made me aware of the things I had to say to him,” explained the 50-year-old.
Ponting is currently the head coach of Punjab Kings (PBKS) in IPL 2025. Punjab Kings have got off to a positive start in IPL 2025, winning two out of the three matches they have played so far. The Shreyas Iyer-led side are currently in fourth place with four points from three matches.
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