Anil Kumble says the retirements of Kohli, Rohit and Pujara along with Shubman Gill’s absence have shaken India’s batting stability.
Former Indian cricketer Anil Kumble believes that the Indian Test team has been left unsettled following the collective retirements of star players Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara.
He added that the exclusion of Ajinkya Rahane and the unavailability of captain Shubman Gill have further contributed to the instability within the squad.
Kumble highlighted the increasing instability in India’s Test batting lineup, pointing to the significant changes in the top five over recent years. With batting stars like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara now retired and Ajinkya Rahane no longer in the mix and Shubman Gill missing from the XI. He emphasized the urgent need to rebuild consistency and place trust in the selected best batters.
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma retired in May, Cheteshwar Pujara followed in August and Ajinkya Rahane has not played a Test since July 2023. Meanwhile, Shubman Gill was unavailable for the series due to a neck injury.
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Anil Kumble said,
“The other aspect of you know, I want to bring this point about India’s batting. Over the last three or four years, you have seen four batters in the top five either retire or not be picked.”
“You know, Virat Kohli is retired, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara then you have of course Rahane. So four players out of five. Shubman Gill isn’t in this team lineup. Yes, India did miss Shubman Gill, the captain. But also more importantly we missed him as
a batter.”
“They will come good and they will be off days. It is just a matter of supporting them for a period of six, seven or eight Tests periodically. But if you just look back at last, 10-12 Tests the batting orders at the top have been up and down.”
“There have been lot of changes there in nowadays. So that is, I am sure a bit unsettling for the players too. So looking at all of that and the effort here and you know we feel disappointed. You expected the effort to be better.”
The former India cricketer and India head coach warned that many changes in the batting order can disrupt a player’s rhythm.
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