Sunil Gavaskar slams critics, says Virat Kohli–Rohit Sharma absence not the reason for India’s slide

Gavaskar dismisses notion that Kohli, Rohit could've changed India’s fate

A group of experts questioned whether the team management and selectors needed to move on from Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma and start a transition phase with a young core led by Shubman Gill amid the commotion around India's second home whitewash in a year. India's 408-run loss in the last Test in Guwahati earlier this week was partly due to the batting unit's lack of experience against the South African attack.

However, former India captain Sunil Gavaskar retaliated to the critics by sharply reminding them of what transpired during the home series against New Zealand in November 2024 and the tour of Australia, while also defending the team management and selectors once more.

The Black Caps defeated India 3-0 last year, their first home Test series loss in 12 years, despite the presence of the two mainstays and Ravichandran Ashwin. India only won one game in Australia, losing the Border-Gavaskar Trophy for the first time in almost ten years.

Talking to Aaj Tak, Gavaskar vehemently denied the idea that Kohli and Rohit could have altered India's destiny, emphasizing that even they would not have been able to save the team from South Africa.

"No, the call to take retirements must have been their call. Probably they might have been asked to consider their future. But we can't say that had they been here, we would have won. They were there when we lost to New Zealand. What happened when they were there? We lost 0-3, no? Then what happened in Australia? We should not be thinking on these lines. No, we can't be thinking whether we pushed them to retirement. That is the wrong way to approach this," he said.

While Kohli and Rohit ended their Test careers in May of this year, Ashwin had announced his retirement from international cricket halfway through the Australian series. Kohli and Rohit will return to play in the forthcoming three-match ODI series against the Proteas, which will begin in Ranchi on November 30, as they are still active in the ODI format.