‘Wasn’t Concerned At All…’ – Former India Captain on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s Test Retirement

Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has said that he did not have any concerns with regards to the Indian Test team following the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in May.

Sourav Ganguly, however, did admit that it will take time to find a good replacement for a “class player” like Virat Kohli, but he isn’t worried about the rest of the team.

Sourav Ganguly on India Test team post Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli

“I was not concerned at all (after the retirements of Virat and Rohit). Virat is a class player, finding his replacement will take time. But the rest, I wasn’t surprised,” the former BCCI President told news agency PTI during an interview.

The “Prince of Kolkata” also heaped praise on new India Test captain Shubman Gill, who registered a century on the opening day of the first Test against England in Leeds on Friday. “I’m so happy with what I’ve seen from Shubman, especially his performance away from home, there’s massive improvement,” added the 52-year-old.

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The Test retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli also opens up the opportunity for youngsters like B Sai Sudharsan and Yashasvi Jaiswal to take the Indian team forward. Sai Sudharsan made his Test debut against England on Friday, but endured a four-ball duck.

Yashasvi Jaiswal, on the other hand, has been regularly playing Tests regularly since making his debut in July 2023 against West Indies. Sourav Ganguly noted the depth of talent in the Indian domestic circuit.

“There’s just too much quality in Indian cricket because of the system, the strength of domestic cricket, leagues, and the investment associations make in player development,” he stated.

India in a strong position against England

India are in a strong position in the first Test against England in Leeds. At the time of writing this report, the visitors were 384/3 in the first innings, with Shubman Gill (135) and Rishabh Pant (80) unbeaten. Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal (101) scored his first century on English soil on Friday whereas KL Rahul contributed 42 runs from 78 balls.

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