Former cricketer Madan Lal on Tuesday said that he’s feeling “very comfortable” to see Indian men’s cricketers Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli participating within the second a part of the Ranji Trophy. India captain Rohit Sharma will participate within the upcoming second phase of the Ranji Trophy for Mumbai. Kohli has also confirmed his availability for Delhi’s Ranji Trophy match against Railways, in line with sources in Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA). Virat’s last appearance within the Ranji Trophy dates back to November 2012 against Uttar Pradesh, by which he was dismissed for 14 and 42 runs in each innings by pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Talking to ANI, Madan Lal said that senior players like Rohit and Virat’s presence within the first-class cricket will help other cricketers to grow.
“I’m so comfortable that each one these players (Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli) are going to play first-class. You might want to play matches within the tournament which has made you the player. It is best to play domestic matches each time you get a likelihood, because, the young players can learn from you. Perhaps someday in the long run, these players will turn into great players…,” Madan Lal told ANI.
He added that If Kohli and Rishabh Pant play for Delhi, then it would help them to qualify for the knockouts in first-class cricket.
“The morale of the team also increases rather a lot when players like Kohli and Rohit play. If a team is struggling to qualify like Delhi. If Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant play, then they’ve a likelihood of winning. So this was an important step…this rule was there before as well. But they used to avoid it. We never avoided first-class matches,” he added.
Rohit’s return to first-class cricket coincides with mounting discussions about his future in Test cricket. At 37, he stays determined to proceed within the longest format, despite stepping aside for India’s XI within the fifth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Sydney earlier this month.
Rohit’s recent performances in red-ball cricket have raised questions. Through the Australia tour, he managed only 31 runs in five innings across three Tests. This followed a lean patch at home within the 2023-24 season, where he averaged just 13.30 in ten innings against Bangladesh and Recent Zealand. Under his leadership, India suffered 3-0 whitewash against Recent Zealand — their first-ever at home in a series of three or more matches.
Things began to vary after India received a 3-1 bashing by the hands of Australia within the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has taken a much harder stance regarding the participation of Indian international stars in domestic cricket.
Earlier on Thursday, BCCI released recent policies for Team India, making it “mandatory” to take part in domestic matches to stay “eligible” for selection within the national team and for the central contracts.
Within the policy, BCCI stated that participating in domestic cricket will remain connected to the cricket ecosystem. The statement added that any exceptions to participating in domestic cricket can be considered only under extraordinary circumstances.
Topics mentioned in this text
