“Earlier they gel with him inside that dressing room environment, the better”- Ashish Nehra on Virat Kohli-Rohit Sharma dynamic with Gautam Gambhir

Former Indian pacer Ashish Nehra feels the selectors made the right decision to include Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in ODI series against Sri Lanka. Nehra, who is GT’s head coach in the IPL, feels it will be better for the team if the veteran duo quickly gel with newly appointed chief coach Gautam Gambhir.

Gambhir and Virat Kohli have had a sour relationship in the past but the former recently squashed any doubts of it becoming a hurdle in the betterment of the team. Nehra also feels the young players can learn from Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who both have retired from T20Is.

Ashish Nehra said on Sports Tak, “The good thing is, even though there is a chance that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli don’t play in the major 50-over tournaments coming up but they are still there for this series in Sri Lanka. Gautam Gambhir has come as a new coach and the earlier they gel with him inside that dressing room environment, the better, regardless of whether they knew each other for many years before that or not. So I like that they are playing the ODIs.”

“Many a times it happens that after a major tournament like the World Cup you would want to give youngsters more chances. India already have a good pool of players for white-ball cricket and so the more time these youngsters spend time with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, the better it is for them.”

The former Indian fast bowler also opened up on the prospect of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli playing in the 2027 ODI World Cup.

“It depends on how passionate and how motivated you are but we know that is not a problem when it comes to Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. That is how they have managed to get to this stage in their careers. But from here on, as you grow older, there are players like Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudharsan and so on who will be scoring runs. They will keep pushing you,” said Nehra.

The first T20I between India and Sri Lanka will be played at Pallekele on Saturday.