“I think physical fitness is very important,” Shastri told ICC Review. “That’s more important than anything else. There’s no substitute for experience. But for me, current form and fitness are also very important. So over the next six months, I know there will be a lot of one-day cricket, but when there is an experienced player playing, just by seeing the way he is batting, you get an idea whether we can jump on the Test cricket bandwagon right away.
“So I will be watching very closely all the one-day matches that are being played, the Champions Trophy that is being played, a bit of the IPL as well. And if it is possible, if there is a gap for them, I think they should come back and play.” domestic cricket and see what it’s like, because when you play Test cricket for so long, it’s important to play domestic cricket.”
Shastri’s suggestion may seem logical at first glance, but the packed cricket schedule leaves both players with a very small window to play any first-class cricket. The white-ball leg of India’s domestic season runs until the third week of January before attention turns to the final part of the Ranji Trophy. But with Kohli and Rohit likely to be part of India’s home ODIs against England in the run-up to the Champions Trophy, they will potentially have just one Ranji game to take part in, starting on January 23.
The other option, although unrealistic, is to try to participate in the county championships early in the English summer. However, this seems almost impossible given that both players have huge pulls for their respective IPL franchises. In Kohli’s case, he is also vying to return to captain Royal Challengers Bengaluru, a position he resigned in 2020.
Ponting: “Kohli still has ability, needs time off”
“The way he’s coming out, you can see he doesn’t want to play in those dances,” Ponting said. “You’re trying not to do it, but there’s a mental block that makes you feel that off-stump. And remember, it’s been going on for a while. You had a mental break, right? Maybe 12 months ago, 18 months ago where he went away for a while and then came back and found his love for the game again.
“So at the moment it seems that the true love for the game for him is not there because he is making it too difficult to enjoy it. So if he wants to continue playing Test cricket, he may need to have a little spell for a time”. In the meantime, regain the love for the game, but there is no doubt that the skill and talent are still there. But sometimes you just need to get away, lock up your gear for a while, spend some time with the family, and think about how hard the game can be.”
