Klusener said Kohli and Rohit’s stature should not prevent Indian cricket from embracing its next generation, stressing that the sport has repeatedly produced players capable of carrying forward the legacy of those who came before them. Former South African cricketer Lance Klusener believes Indian cricket has the talent to move smoothly into its next era, backing Shubman Gill to lead the team for years while identifying young batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as a potential future superstar following the eventual departures of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
Lance Klusener believes Indian cricket has the talent to move smoothly into its next era, backing Shubman Gill to lead the team for years while identifying young batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as a potential future superstar
But on the bright side, there are always younger, fitter, faster players in the wings as well,” Klusener told IANS. The former all-rounder described Gill as an “absolute superstar” with the bat and said the young captain’s next challenge would be to separate his responsibilities as a leader from his role as India’s premier batter. The former Proteas all-rounder, currently the head coach of the Arabian Aces in the Abu Dhabi T10 League, made the remarks while speaking to IANS on the sidelines of an event organised for the tournament, as Indian cricket continues to manage the transition from two of its most influential modern-day players. “As good as Virat and as good as Rohit have been in the past, they will have to walk away from the game when their time comes. But the beauty of cricket is that it carries on. It gets stronger sometimes. When we played, people never thought that Sachin Tendulkar ‘s records would ever be broken. And people are challenging those already. So, players come and go. It’s a sad day when legends of your game and legends of your country step away. “For me personally, I’m convinced already. I think he’s the right man for the job. He’s an absolute superstar with the bat. It’s probably just about being able to separate Shubman Gill as a batter and Shubman Gill as a captain as well. I think all the great captains have been able to separate that. And I’m sure he’ll have a lot of opportunities and a lot of people to lean on to help him do that. “It’s a balance. Every team is different. Every nation works the retirement of players differently, and players retire every single season. India are facing that now with those two stars. South Africa have faced that with stars that they’ve had as well.
