"Their performances had been missing" - Former all-rounder's stunning take on Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma ahead of ENG vs IND 2025 1st Test

Former all-rounder Irfan Pathan believes the absence of senior players Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli on the England tour won't have a big impact on the Indian team's performance. He pointed out that the two veteran batters hadn't been at their best in red-ball cricket lately.

Sharma and Kohli announced their retirements from Test cricket last month. In the aftermath, Shubman Gill was appointed as the new red-ball skipper, with keeper-batter Rishabh Pant named as his deputy.

Commenting on the visitors being without seasoned campaigners Sharma and Kohli for the five-match Test series against England, here's what Pathan said in a video posted on his YouTube channel 'Iran Pathan' (from 4:26):

"Everyone believes that the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will make a difference. But I believe that it will not make any difference in terms of performance. Their performances had been missing for the past year and a half. "Both of them are big players, but the performances were not there. So if a new guy gives an average of 20-25, he has done the work of Kohli's level, as he averaged 15 in the first innings in the recent past."

Pathan, however, opined that Sharma and Kohli's absence will be felt in the dressing room. Suggesting that the onus will now be on the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, KL Rahul and Pant to guide the youngsters, the cricketer-turned-commentator added:

"However, their experience and presence in the dressing room will be missed. Now there will be more responsibility on Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul."

England's 'Bazball' approach has been a major talking point in the lead-up to the five-match series. Pathan reckoned that India should counter the counter-attacking style of batting by placing a few boundary-saving fielders right from the start.

He remarked (from 3:38):

"It is not like that when the England batters play attacking cricket, you just have fielders in slip and gully hoping for an edge. An in-and-out field will be very important and I don't mind having such a field right from the start. "It's a different thing in the first five-six overs but after that, as soon as one batter gets set, having fielders at deep point, deep square-leg and fine-leg to stop boundaries is very important. With that field, you can also use the bouncer effectively," Pathan added.

The five-match Test series between the two cricketing giants kicks off on Friday, June 20. The opening encounter will take place at Headingley, Leeds.

---

"Has performed regularly in red-ball cricket" - Irfan Pathan backs Karun Nair to be India's No. 3 in ENG vs IND 2025 1st Test

In the same video, Irfan Pathan stated that Karun Nair should get the nod over Sai Sudharsan for the No. 3 spot in the Indian batting order. He highlighted that Nair has experience of playing international cricket and has been a consistent performer in domestic cricket.

He mentioned that while Sai Sudharsan has also looked in great touch lately, his runs have come in white-ball cricket. Backing Nair to be India's No. 3 in the crucial Test series opener, Pathan said (from 11:18):

"According to me, playing Karun Nair is a better option because he has played international cricket and looked in great form in First-Class cricket. Yes, Sai Sudharsan could be ahead when you consider the current form, but that was in white-ball cricket. Karun Nair has performed regularly in red-ball cricket."

Irfan Pathan's preferred IND XI: KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Karun Nair, Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.

Follow IPL Auction 2025 Live Updates, News & Biddings at Sportskeeda. Get the fastest updates on Mega-Auction and cricket news

Edited by Aditya Suketu Desai