NEW DELHI: Former West Indies captain Brian Lara on Sunday expressed support for Indian cricket stars Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to participate in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup set to take place in the West Indies and the USA.
Lara emphasised the duo’s extensive experience with Caribbean conditions. While Rohit and Virat haven’t featured in India’s T20I team since the 10-wicket loss to England in the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 semifinals in Australia last November, the team has been experimenting with young talents like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Tilak Varma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, among others.

Regardless of the composition, Lara believes that India, with its chosen players, will be a formidable force, but he highlights the added advantage that Virat and Rohit bring with their familiarity with Caribbean playing conditions.
“I think whichever team India picks, they are going to be a force to be reckoned with. But you can’t replace experience. What Virat and Rohit bring a lot of experience. They know the conditions in the Caribbean. They have played there. I wouldn’t say that they should dictate their future but I think the sort of players, the legends that they are in the game, I am almost sure there will be a lot of respect in finding out what they want to do, how far they want to push it and make the decision then,” said Lara to ANI.

Statistically, Virat and Rohit are two of the best T20I batters ever. In 115 matches, Virat leads the run-scoring charts with 4,008 runs at an average of 52.73, with one century and 37 fifties. His best score is 122* and his strike rate is 137.96.
Rohit is the second-highest run-scorer in the format, scoring 3,853 runs at an average of 31.32 and a strike rate of 139.24. His best score is 118. He has four centuries and 29 fifties in the format.

In the Caribbean, Virat has played 33 international games, scoring 1,597 runs at an average of 49.90, with six centuries and seven fifties. His best score here is 200.
Similarly, Rohit in this region has played 29 international matches, scoring 1,004 runs at an average of 50.20, with one century and nine fifties. His best score is 103.
(With ANI Inputs)