This is with reference to the news item published in Gulf Today on Dec.15, “Azhar questions Kohli and Rohit’s absence from South Africa ODI and Test series.”

Former Indian skipper Mohammed Azharuddin wrote in his tweet a few days back, Virat Kohli has informed that he’s not available for the ODI series and Rohit Sharma is unavailable for the upcoming Test series.

There is no harm in taking breaks but timing should be better. These decisions will give further air to news of the tussle between the two.

This just substantiates speculation about the rift. Neither will be giving up the other form of cricket. I completely agree with the view of Azhar.  I don’t know what’s wrong with both of them. They should not forget that they both are on national duty, hence they should respect it.  It is not a matter of one person, it matters billions of Indians who put their heart and soul into the matches.

Kahli and Rohit are veterans and mature enough to handle any situation, but skipping a series like this should not have happened or they should have made a joint press statement.  

We all consider our cricketers as our role models and Team India has lots of youngsters like Shreyas Iyer, Harsha Patel, Md. Seraj, Reshabh Pant and many more so they should get a good message.  Merely by passing the buck will put morale of the team down.

Ashrafullah Khan
By email