Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli For 2024 T20 World Cup? Not Age, But Form Should Be Deciding Factor: Gautam Gambhir

Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir has said that not age but form should decide if Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will travel to the Caribbean Islands for the upcoming T20 World Cup. He said that age shouldn't be a selection criterion, highlighting the experience that Rohit and Kohli will bring to the team. India have started the final leg of preparations for the 2024 T20 World Cup, which will begin in June, without their senior-most players Rohit and Kohli already phased out of the shortest format.

The duo played their last T20I against England in the 2022 T20 World Cup semifinals. They were busy preparing for the ODI World Cup and the Test commitments in 2023 and they weren't part of the T20I setup.

Ravindra Jadeja is back as vice-captain of Suryakumar Yadav for the three-match series in South Africa. BCCI confirmed that Rohit and Kohli opted for a break from the white-ball games with the selectors naming them both in the Test team for a two-Test series, beginning December 26.

Hardik Pandya has been on the sidelines because of an ankle injury he picked up in the ODI World Cup and SKY has been leading the team in the recent past.

"See, it all depends on the form. Ultimately, it's the form. The good thing is it's happening after the IPL. 100 percent. They should be part of the World Cup if they are in good form. For me, form is important. For a T20 World Cup, you want to take players who are in really good form. If Rohit and Virat are in good form, they should be picked for the World Cup," Gambhir told ANI.

The former Indian cricketer backed Rohit's leadership for the upcoming T20 World Cup, highlighting the impact the Mumbai Indians captain had as the skipper in the ODI World Cup.

"Rohit has done a very, very good job. It's not easy to win 5 IPL trophies. And then the way India dominated in the last 50-over World Cup... One bad game doesn't make Rohit Sharma or this team a bad team and the way they dominated... I can still understand if you win tight games, the way they played... it's not fair to say Rohit is a bad captain after just one bad game," Gambhir added.