NEW DELHI: Former Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin he has thrown his support behind Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohlisaid that the two big players cannot be removed if they still want to play in India. Ashwin’s comments came after Rohit left off a brilliant century in the third and final ODI against England at Lord’s. Although India lost the match by 27 runs and the series 2-1, Rohit’s 138 reminded everyone why he remains one of India’s all-time greats. Speaking on his YouTube channel Ash ki Baat, Ashwin said: “‘Rohit Sharma aur Virat Kohli ko touch nahi kar payenge (They won’t be able to touch Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma). They can’t touch Virat and Rohit if they want to play. It’s because of their identities. Rohit has scored almost 12,000 runs;Ashwin said there is another big reason why the two stars are struggling to break up.Another thing is, they cannot be touched because they are fighters. They have an army, an army. People come to see them. When you knock them down, they just knock the ceiling down.Ashwin also said that bowlers do not get the same treatment as former batsmen.“But if Shami, Siraj or Bhuvneshwar are not selected, 10 people will ask. 100 people, 1000 people, maybe 10,000 people will ask. But they will not make noise. When the day comes when people make a noise, it will be difficult to bring them down again.”
Rohit answers the opposition with Lord’s age
Rohit’s place in the ODI squad came under intense scrutiny after reports claimed that the BCCI selection committee had not considered him for the 2027 ODI World Cup.The Indian captain had scores of 11 and 26 in the first two ODIs against England before his surprise defeat in the series.Chasing 388 at Lord’s, Rohit smashed 138 off just 110 balls, hitting 17 fours and five fives. He maintained India’s chase till the end, even though the visitors were 27 short.
‘There will be noise’
After the match, Rohit made it clear that speculation about his future has not affected him.In an interview with BCCI.tv, he said that foreign criticism has become part of his career and that his only goal is to play for India.“Look, my job is with the bat… Stand up for my country… This is what I will do. Noise… Since I made my debut, I was there and until the time I will be here, it will always be there. So it doesn’t really matter. What matters is what I do on the field,” said Rohit.