Former Indian cricketer and well-known commentator Navjot Singh Sidhu hit out at critics of batting icons Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma after their poor performances in the recent Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 in Australia.
Virat Kohli, who has a fantastic Test record in Australia, started the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 with an unbeaten century in the first Test but failed to carry the momentum further and finished with just 190 runs in the five match test. series.
Navjot Singh Sidhu defends Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma amid backlash after poor Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25
On the other hand, Rohit Sharma missed the first Test after the birth of his second child and was rested for the final Test against Australia. The Indian skipper was more miserable with the bat, scoring just 31 runs in three Tests.
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They faced backlash for their poor tournament as Australia defeated India 3-1 to reach the WTC 2025 Final and also lifted the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after 10 years. Amid heavy criticism, Navjot Singh Sidhu has defended Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma saying that even great players have gone through bad patches.
He pointed out that the long-lasting contributions of Kohli and Rohit to Indian cricket cannot be overlooked due to months of poor form. Sidhu reminded everyone of past cricketing legends like Mark Taylor, Mohammad Azharuddin and Sourav Ganguly who faced long spells of failure but eventually bounced back.
He pointed out that it only takes one good innings to return to form and backed the duo to come back strongly. Navjot Singh Sidhu was quoted by Sports Tak as saying, “You know, one's bad form has been coming for two months. You can't delete it. The services he has provided for so long, I know you can't rest on your laurels.”
“You have to refresh them with new ones. But you have to give allowance. Mark Taylor kept failing for a year and a half. Persevering. Azharuddin kept failing. Ganguly failed in 8 innings. And he said, I can fail in 8 innings. , but it only takes one inning to come back.”
The cricket expert also pointed out that just six months ago, both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli led India to the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 and reminded everyone that cricket is a team game and blaming individual players is easy. He urged everyone to have faith in both the Indian batting icons.
Sidhu noted, “It's a team game. Blame is the easiest thing. It's easy to hit rocks. But some people make their houses out of the stones that the world throws at them.” The former Indian cricketer-turned-politician pointed out that Virat Kohli has faced challenges before and it is wrong to involve his personal life in public criticism.
He urged people to respect heroes like Kohli and be patient. Sidhu reminded everyone that tough times are part of every player's journey and just as stars shine brightest in the darkest nights, Kohli will rise again through his struggles.
Sidhu concluded by saying, “These are the kind of people. This is not the first time that Virat Kohli is in trouble. It is not the first time that his wife has been dragged between them. Correct? This is wrong. We must learn to respect our heroes. You have a little patience. And, I mean, you'll understand. Look, the darker the night, the brighter the star. So I think these were three eras. And in these eras, everyone had a bad time.”