Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan believes that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s Test form will not affect their batting in white-ball cricket. The star duo will return to international duties in the ODI series against England. Rohit and Virat are preparing for the Champions Trophy 2025 with a three-match series, starting February 6.
The duo looked out of touch in the Test series against New Zealand and Australia, which resulted in questions being asked about their spots in the Indian team. However, Pathan feels that the senior batting duo will be able to continue their dominant run in white-ball format even though their red-ball form is down in the trenches.
Speaking to PTI, the former India cricketer backed Rohit and Virat to bounce back strongly in the England series and then the Champions Trophy.
“They’ll start scoring runs in white-ball cricket; there’s no doubt about that,” Irfan said.
“Test cricket is a different ball game altogether. Adjustments are needed, whether it’s Virat managing deliveries outside the off-stump or Rohit finding his rhythm. ODI is their favourite format, and they’ll bounce back strongly,” Pathan added.
Interestingly, Rohit and Virat last played a white-ball game in the series against Sri Lanka, where India were beaten 2-0. The senior duo is trying to revive their form and are playing the Ranji Trophy during the break.
While Rohit has already played one innings vs Jammu and Kashmir, Kohli has skipped the penultimate round of the Ranji Trophy but is expected to play Delhi’s final group-stage game of the tournament.
Reacting to the news of the duo playing domestic cricket, Pathan said: “It’s about playing domestic cricket, but don’t play a couple of matches just for the sake of it and show that you’ve played. Playing regularly benefits both players and Indian cricket. For young players, competing against the likes of Kohli or Rohit at the domestic level can be a tremendous confidence boost as they would also raise their levels to bowl to them. Ultimately, Indian cricket gains from this.”
