India next play an ODI series starting November 30 against South Africa at home.
Well, first things first – the headline itself is enough to send the Indian cricket fans into a frenzy. Cricket in the country is added to the list of festivals already, and talking about replacing Virat Kohli is like asking the Indians to stop celebrating their most favourite festival. All said and done, Kohli is one of the best No.3 batters India have ever produced in ODI cricket.
Virat Kohli could not trouble the scorers in the first two games of the three-match ODI series against Australia. But the third ODI was different. The fist pump, which generally came out after a milestone, was flaunted after Kohli got off the mark. All the hype, build-up to the series was suddenly justified as Kohli carried India home with an unbeaten 74 along with Rohit Sharma.
Since Virat Kohli has announced his retirement from the longest format of the game, one of the most discussed points have been about whether he can make it to the World Cup in 2027 – whether the ODI legend would be able to play on the fast wickets in South Africa. Though most of the factors would revolve around his performances in the format, it is not just about numbers!
It is extremely important for the management and Shubman Gill to have an eye on the succession plan. It is not about how many runs Virat Kohli has scored or will have scored. It is not just about the stats. It is about who will take the mantle of anchoring the innings in ODI cricket after Virat Kohli is gone. The preparation needs to start, and it needs to start now.
The three-match ODI series ended well for the Men in Blue. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma stitching a 168-run partnership was all that the Indians could have asked for. There were fireworks after the contest ended, and social media was buzzing with just a single word – RoKo! However, there was something more to it.
The Australians took the series away quietly. Without their gun players. Without Steve Smith or Pat Cummins. They played with their Cooper Connolly’s and Mitchell Owen’s, while the Indians were left celebrating a solitary match, just because their heroes scored a ton and a half-century respectively. Just to be clear – there’s nothing wrong with celebrating a win. It’s just that it lacked context.
On the other side of the spectrum, teams like Australia and South Africa have started to prepare themselves for the mega-event in 2027. The South Africans have started putting the likes of Dewald Brevis and Kwena Maphaka into the mix slowly, whereas the English have also started walking down the same path.
Yes, India have also given the captaincy to young Shubman Gill with the same outlook (to focus on building a robust setup for the World Cup in 2027). However, the transition that the side needs to go through is somewhere being delayed due to emotional quotients. Once again, it is not about the runs Kohli is scoring. He might go on to score plenty more in the next year. But the question is: till when will he?
The point being, there are a few decisions that need to be taken, not just with the past in mind, but also the future. There is not a speck of doubt about what Virat Kohli has given Indian cricket. He would go down as one of the best in Indian cricket history. But when one speaks of the plans for the 2027 ODI World Cup shaping up, all we hear are two names. Are we thinking beyond?
The legends aren’t getting any younger. The number of 50-over matches are not getting any more in terms of quantity. With the likes of Virat Kohli playing a single format, it is going to get extremely difficult for him to persist for two more years. It has got nothing to do with his quality and class – but about the future of Indian cricket. Because the game waits for no one.
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No.3 is regarded as the toughest position to bat at, due to the demands of the position. Someone batting at three would have a great ability to adapt to the situation. The batter may find himself out in the middle on the second delivery of the innings, or in the 30th over. Each of these situations would require the No.3 to play differently, and that is why it is a special skill.
The Gujarat Titans (GT) opener has played just three ODIs for India till date. In those three games, he has scored 127 runs at an average of 63.5, with two fifties under his belt. Though he hasn’t played an ODI for a long period of time, he will have fond memories of the three matches that he was a part of. To add to that, the youngster has got the technique which is required for a batter to be successful at No.3 in the ODI format.
The most important factor would be that if the change is made now, Sudharsan would have a lot of time under his wings to get set into the role before going into the coveted event. To add to that, both his fifties have come on South African soil, which is indicative of the fact that the left-handed batter can have a psychological advantage in terms of the venue as well.
It would be wrong to look at Virat Kohli’s replacement with just the World Cup in mind. It is something much greater than that. It is about the transition happening smoothly. Whatever said and done, the sport will always remain greater than a player, and that is exactly what makes it beautiful. However, India must focus on the future a bit more than they currently are.
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