It’s been over a decade since Indian men’s cricket team last won an ICC trophy. This after it has continued to produce world-class players, has the most powerful cricket board running the show and the country is home to perhaps the best T20 league tournament in the world.
It was 2013 when India last won an ICC title – the Champions Trophy – and post that it has been a case of so near yet so far, repeatedly.
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The Men in Blue did come close several times, be it the 2014 T20 World Cup, 2017 Champions Trophy, the World Test Championship Finals in 2021 and 2023 or the most recent ODI World Cup 2023 at home but they have failed to handle the pressure leading to murmurs of being ‘knockout chokers’.
The 2023 ODI World Cup was considered as the best opportunity for India to break their title drought. It seemed a real possibility as they produced a dominant show on their road to the final with a 10-match winning streak but they faltered at the biggest stage against Australia in what turned out to be a one-sided affair.
While it may have appeared that the 2023 world cup was the last chance for the duo of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to add another ICC trophy (limited overs) against their names but it’s not yet over.
They have returned to India’s T20 set-up and the probability of them making it to India’s squad for the world cup – slated for June this year- seems quite high.
Both Rohit and Kohli made their respective return to India’s T20I side after a gap of almost 14 months with the recently concluded Afghanistan series.
Skipper Rohit had forgettable first two outings where he was dismissed for ducks but he just owned the stage in the third T20I with a marvellous ton to show everyone that he has still one of the most dangerous batters in white-ball cricket.
Kohli also made an instant impact with an aggressive knock while batting at number 3 in the second T20I.
Kohli is known for pacing his innings by taking some time to get settled and then smashing the bowlers in the death overs. But in the second T20I, he proved that he can go all guns blazing right from the start, showing he’s ready to moult his game to suit the team’s need.
The batting maestro scored 29 runs off 16 balls at an excellent strike-rate of 181.25. He scored five fours during his stay in the middle. However, the 35-year-old got dismissed for a golden duck in the third T20I.
Former England spinner Monty Panesar in an exclusive conversation with News18 CricketNext gave his take on Rohit and Kohli’s return to India’s T20I fold.
Panesar feels that the Indian team management is looking to give the the pair another shot at the World Cup but he also pointed out that India have always performed well in bilateral series but failed to get over the line in ICC events.
“They have to give them (Kohli and Rohit) another World Cup. Look he (Rohit Sharma) is playing well. India always play well in these kinds of bilateral series where the pressure isn’t on,” Panesar told News18 CricketNext.
Both Rohit and Kohli have won World Cups before in their senior careers – 2007 T20 World Cup (Rohit) and 2011 ODI World Cup (Kohli) but they were not the main protagonists during the title victories. The duo was also part of the 2013 Champions Trophy triumph.
Talking about India’s ICC title drought, Panesar made a bold comment that this current Indian team doesn’t know how to win a final but they know how to get into one.
“In these kinds of games (bilateral series) they play their best cricket but when it comes to an ICC semifinals or final they just fail to handle it. I don’t know why, when I watched the World Cup, they played the best cricket – the seamers and everything but it’s just one game. I think it’s just the pressure of playing in the finals. I don’t think this current team knows how to win a final but it knows how to get to the final. They play their best cricket going to the final and everybody thinks they are going to win the tournament but then it’s that one game,” Panesar said.
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