Indian cricket legend Kapil Dev believes players should continue as long as they are fit and enjoying the game. When asked about when current Team India stars like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma should retire, he emphasized that the decision is ultimately theirs to make.
Kohli is set to celebrate his 36th birthday in November of this year, while Rohit turned 37 years of age in April. Both of them declared that they were stepping down from T20 Internationals after the West Indies and US hosted T20 World Cup 2024, however they remain active in the two other formats.
Answering the big question regarding the retirement of Rohit and Kohli, Hindustan Times quoted Kapil as saying to MyKhel:
“Ravi Shastri retired at a very early age while Sachin Tendulkar had a longer stint. So it is completely up to the individual to decide their ways of life. My way of thinking is to stay fit and keep playing as long as you are enjoying the game.”
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Kapil, however, observed that every cricketer’s prime lies between the ages of 26 and 34. The former captain of India who received the 1983 World Cup explained:
“In my opinion, the period between 26 and 34 years is your prime and thereafter the fitness of the players will ensure their longevity.”
Kapil ended his international career by retiring from all formats of the game in the year 1994 when he was a few days shy of turning 36 years old. Over his illustrious career, this all-rounder participated in 131 Tests and 225 ODIs from which he took 434 and 253 scalps respectively. With the bat, the aggressive batsman managed to score 5248 runs in Test matches and 3783 runs in the ODIs.
How have Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli performed in international cricket in 2024?
In the year 2024, if we analyze the global statistics of these two Indian legends, Rohit has played 21 matches (27 innings) and scored 1,001 runs at an average of 41.70 with three centuries and six fifties. For Kohli, assesses 319 runs in a total of 15 games (17 innings) at an average of 18.76, with just a single fifty.
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When it comes to their statistics, Rohit averages 38.83 with two hundreds in seven Tests scoring 466 runs. He has also played 3 ODIs where he scored a total of 157 runs at an average of 52.33, scoring two fifties. The Hitman has also appeared for 11 T20Is during which he scored 378 runs with an average of 42 and a strike rate of 160.16, with a century and three fifties.
On the other hand, Kohli has batted in two Tests in 2024 scoring 81 runs at an average of 20.25. In addition, he has only been able to score 58 runs in three ODIs played at a miserable 19.33 average and 180 runs over 10 T20Is at 18 average and strike rate of 119.20.
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