It took Rohit Sharma just 62 deliveries to breeze to three-figures on Wednesday afternoon; Virat Kohli took a little longer, 84 balls, getting there, but then again, he was faced with a marginally more experienced and potent attack.
The long-awaited return to the inter-state 50-over tournament for the Vijay Hazare Trophy of the celebrated duo was an unqualified success on a day when batting records were sent tumbling, not least by the precocious Vaibhav Suryavanshi who, at 14, has become the youngest List A centurion in the sport’s history. Suryavanshi, who also boasts three T20 hundreds, is the future, if things go to plan. Rohit and Kohli reiterated that they are anything but the past, helping themselves to runs aplenty against Sikkim and Andhra respectively.
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Just how much of a draw Rohit continues to be was evident from more than 10,000 spectators thronging the Sawai Man Singh Stadium in Jaipur to partake of the entertainment. The Sikkim bowlers, understandably more fan boys than competitors, one suspects, didn’t mind being taken to the cleaners by one of the greatest white-ball batters of all time. Andhra’s bowlers might not have entertained the same thoughts, but they were schooled by the master of the chase in front of no spectators at all at the Centre of Excellence ground in the outskirts of Bengaluru, to where the games scheduled to be held at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium were shifted at the proverbial last minute.
The fan-frenzy that greeted Rohit, and that would undoubtedly have marked Kohli’s return to the Hazare Trophy after a decade and a half had the match been held at an accessible venue, is the ultimate proof that domestic cricket needs the stars to lift its profile. That’s the harsh reality because the supply chain which makes India the vibrant international force it is, is otherwise relegated to anonymity with only the primary stakeholders in attendance.
The BCCI mandate should be reconsidered
Rohit and Kohli might not have turned up for Mumbai and Delhi respectively had it not been for the diktat from the Board of Control for Cricket in India that all available internationals (with the exception of Jasprit Bumrah) must play at least two matches each in the Hazare Trophy ahead of the limited-overs showdown against New Zealand in January. On paper, that is a sound policy because it compels players not to shirk from representing their states; the past is replete with instances of stars coming up with inventive excuses to refrain from domestic duties. But what, pray, will Rohit and Kohli gain from pitting their wares against bowlers who, with all due respect, are nowhere in the league of those that they will be playing at the highest level?
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One of the major challenges for this crack duo is summoning the motivation to front up for these matches. Kohli, for instance, is at nothing less than 100% intensity whenever he sets foot in a competitive setting. Warm-up matches on tours have failed to excite him, which is why he has generally shied away from playing in those games. That’s not to say that they have outgrown domestic cricket. It is just that there must be a greater incentive than merely stacking up runs and records and hundreds at this level. At this stage of their careers, they will welcome being compelled to dig deep, being asked questions of their technique. On flat tracks against not the most threatening of attacks, how will these things add up?
There is the rider that matchplay, any matchplay, is infinitely more useful than hours of nets against even the best bowlers in the business. That was apparent in Australia in October when Kohli carried the residual rust of not having played competitively since early June; it took a couple of visits to the crease (never mind that he failed to tickle the scorers in either of those) for him to retune to the demands of international cricket. Rohit and Kohli are coming off stellar runs in ODIs; the Mumbaikar was Player of the Series in the 1-2 loss in Australia, Kohli bagged the same honours in the 2-1 conquest of South Africa when he uncorked two centuries and an unbeaten fifty in three knocks. If the principle is to ensure that everyone is treated the same (pace ace Bumrah being an exception is perfectly fine, for obvious reasons), so be it. But there must be some method to madness, all concerned will agree.
One-format internationals Rohit and Kohli might not even have the next 50-over World Cup, a good 23 months away, on their immediate radar. But if that is the endgame, they will be better off playing in domestic 50-over competitions overseas to keep their competitive juices flowing when they aren’t representing the country, instead of making forced token appearances in India. After all, we are talking about two seasoned, mature, proud and successful former captains who are driven by their own expectations. It won’t be the worst idea to stop lumping them in the same basket as the rest.
