Rohit Sharma defends Virat Kohli, lashes out at the media

India’s limited-overs skipper Rohit Sharma was not in the mood to answer questions about Virat Kohli’s batting form, blaming the media for excessive scrutiny of the previous captain’s batting form. On the eve of the T20I series against the West Indies, Rohit reaffirmed that the team’s management had no problems with Kohli.

Virat Kohli scored only 26 runs in three One-Day Internationals against the West Indies earlier this month, setting a new low by scoring less than 50 runs in a bilateral ODI series for the first time since 2015. Although he lost both encounters in South Africa, he had begun the year well with two fifties.

“I believe it all starts with you (the media). From what I can see, he’s in a terrific mental state. He understands how to deal with pressure. I’m sure he’ll be OK if you people just remain quiet for a while “When asked how the captain and head coach Rahul Dravid will deal with Kohli’s uneven play, Rohit stated on Tuesday.

Rohit’s strong response comes just days after he highlighted that there is nothing wrong with Virat Kohli’s confidence, even if he can’t produce the massive scores he used to get on a regular basis.

Is Virat Kohli lacking confidence? When Rohit was asked whether the management of the team supports the former captain, he laughed. “If Kohli is lacking in confidence, who else on the squad is? I know he hasn’t gotten a hundred in a long time, but he’s getting fifties. Even in South Africa, he hit two fifties in three games.”

It would be exciting to see how Virat Kohli handles his T20I innings against the West Indies, given that he will be playing in the format as a non-captain for the first time in almost four years.

Kohli stood down as T20I captain after the World Cup last year and did not play in the home series against the West Indies.

Kohli has recently been chastised for taking a long time to get going in the shortest version of the game, but his number game is powerful. Kohli appeared in 10 T20Is in 2021, scoring 290 runs with four fifties at an average of over 74.

After winning the ODI series 3-0, India will face the West Indies in three Twenty20 Internationals from February 16 to 20 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.