Well, it was much expected. Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jadeja were expected to retire from T20 at the end of the World Cup. It didn’t come out of the blue. The writing was on the wall ever since the last T20 World Cup in which India were unceremoniously dumped by England. Suddenly, both Rohit and Kohli were back in the scheme of things. To their credit, they did have a significant impact in the tournament. Kohli in the final and Rohit in the league games. Having said that, with the next World Cup a couple of years away, it is time to give the youngsters a run so that they are ready for the next World Cup. This is about the retirement of the seniors.
T20 cricket is for the youngsters. They are the ones who have the power and send the ball soaring over the boundary. The format itself calls for brute force. Rohit and Kohli are touch players and Jadeja is the only one among the trio who has got some power. It is to their credit that they adapted to the demands of the format after dismal World Cups in UAE and Australia. Kohli even chose to sacrifice his slot at number 3 and decided to open in the World Cup. The bottomline is that all goods things must come to an end.
They are leaving satisfied after years and years of reversals in the World Cups . Probably, they were destined to win the World Cup just before retirement.
The predicament of the previous seniors
It was a good decision to drop both of them. It was time to plan for the next 10 years with the service of younger players. Afterall, T20 is a format for the youngsters. Back in the day, when T20 cricket was very much in vogue, the first World T20 was inaugurated in 2007, the stalwarts of the Indian team, Dravid, Tendulkar and Ganguly, who were all in the mid-30s, felt that the format was not for them and they promptly choose to skip the World Cup altogether, thereby a young Indian team under Dhoni to take shape. It was a courageous decision on their part.
It would not have been easy for them, who have served the country for so long and faithfully, to conclude that their game and age does not suit the requirements of one particular format. The ego would not have allowed it. The selectors for their part, would have happily selected them in the squad.
At the corner of their mind, they still would have wanted to have a crack just to be part of the new format but they were not swayed by their ego and promptly decided not to even contemplate T20. Ofcourse, Dravid still went onto make his debut in T20, just one game when there wasn’t enough players around in England. The truth is that Dravid, Tendulkar amd Ganguly understood the requirements of the format and took a decision that benefitted the team.
Statements of Rohit, Kohli and Jadeja
“This is my last T20 game playing for India, my last World Cup I was going to play,” the 37-year-old Kohli said after the final. “I wanted to make the most of it. And this was our aim. We wanted to win an ICC tournament, we wanted to lift the cup.
“With a heart full of gratitude, I bid farewell to T20 internationals,” Jadeja wrote underneath a picture of him holding the trophy.
“Like a steadfast horse galloping with pride, I’ve always given my best for my country and will continue to do so in other formats,” added Jadeja,
“This is my last game as well, no better time to say goodbye to this format,” Rohit said after the T20 World Cup final.
These retirements leaves a void in the squad but fear not. There are adequate replacements for all of them. Ruturaj, Jaiswal and Gill for opening the innings not to mention Abhishek Sharma who in the company of Travis Head, lit the IPL with his aggressive batting at the top. Sundar can slot in for Jadeja. Axar Patel has already made Jadeja’s spot his own. He will be part of Indian T20 cricket for the foreseeable future just for his ability with the bat. Another is Venkatesh Iyer with his ability to open the innings and bowl a few overs. Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson and a few others can fill the Kohli spot. Basically, replacements are adequate. How are they utilised is the question.
Pandya in all likelihood will become the designated captain with Bumrah closely following him. Everything depends on who among the two is likely to be fit for a large part of their careers. Sanju Samson is an outside chance to become the captain. Especially, if he has a successful 2025 IPL season.
Wrapping up the retirement of the seniors
The next T20 World Cup will be in 2026. Rohit, Kohli and Jadeja will be on the wrong side of 30s. Logically, they will have to announce retirement at the end of the World Cup from T20. They must not force the selectors to drop them which will not sit well with any of them. These players will continue to play for their respective franchises in the IPL. That is for the franchise to decide. Rohit and Kohli is a brand and their franchises will not allow them to leave the scene that easily. Take the case of Dhoni who is still playing without creating much impact thereby making a joke of himself.