‘It will be foolish to remove Virat Kohli from captaincy’, says Shoaib Akhtar

Former Pakistani paceman Shoaib Akhtar on Thursday said that it will be foolish to remove Virat Kohli from captaincy. More details inside

By Mohsin Kamal

Published on Aug 02, 2019 | 12:18 AM IST | 1.4M

‘It will be foolish to remove Virat Kohli from captaincy’, says Shoaib Akhtar

Former Pakistan cricketer Shoaib Akhtar on Thursday showed his support for Indian skipper Virat Kohli, saying it will be foolish to remove him from captaincy. Soon after India was eliminated in the World Cup semi-final, there has been a bit of debate going among cricket fans about if Kohli should continue to lead India.

Several people have put in their opinion of handing ODI captaincy to Rohit Sharma who has shared a lot of success as Mumbai Indians’ skipper in Indian Premier League (IPL). However, Shoaib Akhtar believes Kohli is still the right man to lead Men in Blue,

"I think Virat Kohli shouldn't be removed as the captain because a lot has been invested on him. He has been the captain for the last 3-4 years. What he needs is a better coach, better selection committee and he can be made better," Akhtar was quoted as saying on his YouTube channel.

I have no doubts that Rohit is a good captain and he has done a good job in IPL but I think an investment has been made and that investment can be made better with a slight tweak. Virat Kohli is a sensible choice to carry on. I think it will be foolish to remove Kohli from captaincy,"

Akhtar also said that the reports of a rift between Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are not true,

"There is a talk going on in India that the team is divided into groups because of the reported rift between Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. I guess Rohit wants to become the captain and Virat is coming in his way but I don't think these rumours are true," He said.