'Downhill Since Virat Kohli Stepped Down' - Salman Butt Targets Rohit Sharma's India After WTC Final Defeat
Rohit Sharma failed with the bat in WTC Final (AP Photo)
India's decade-long wait to clinch an ICC trophy came crashing down as they succumbed to a crushing 209-run defeat at the hands of Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at The Oval. In the aftermath of a heart-wrenching defeat, Rohit Sharma, the captain of India, lamented the lack of sufficient practice time for the team ahead of the marquee event.
Notably, the majority of the Indian players who took part in the WTC final had been actively participating in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 until a week before the start of the Test.
Weighing in on the same matter, former Pakistan cricketer Salman Butt conceded that if they really wanted the practice time, they could have chosen to withdraw from the IPL 2023, which took place just before the one-off Test match.
Here’s what Salman Butt said:
"Rohit Sharma asked why the final of the World Test Championship takes place in June. He also stated that it should be moved out of England. These are the debates that happen once you don't get favorable results," Butt said on his Youtube channel.
"Instead, we should talk about priorities. If the WTC final was India's priority, they should have finished the IPL before 20 days. They should have sent their squad to England 15 days before the final to play a couple of matches against county teams."
The former Pakistan captain also believes that India's Test performances on foreign soil have taken a dip since Virat Kohli stepped down as captain. Notably, Kohli relinquished the Test captaincy after India's tour of South Africa in January 2022.
"India have an impressive away record in Tests. However, it has all been downhill since Virat Kohli stepped down as captain. Things haven't been stable since then. They would have won in India anyway, even without having a captain. One can assess captaincy only when the team tours abroad."
Kohli had been one of India's longest-serving captains in the longest format of the game, having successfully led the team in whites for around 8 years. Taking over from MS Dhoni amidst a high-profile series in Australia in 2014, Kohli embraced the responsibility and never looked back.
Kohli led India to a historic Test series victory in Australia in 2018-19. It was also under his captaincy that India took a 2-1 lead in a five-match Test series in England in 2021. The last Test, however, was only played next year after it was postponed from its original schedule due to a Covid outbreak in the visiting camp.
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