‘Big shoes to fill for the players coming in’ – Brett Lee reacts to T20I retirements of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja

Former Australian gun fast bowler Brett Lee reckons India will have big shoes to fill after the T20I retirements of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja. After taking the team to glory in the T20 World Cup, the trio decided to hang their boots from the shortest format at the International level.

While Rohit Sharma scored 257 runs in eight matches of the T20 World Cup 2024 at an average of 36.71 and a strike rate of 156.71, Kohli scored a vital knock of 76 runs off 59 balls in the all-important final against the Proteas after a disappointing run throughout the tournament. Thus, the duo once again played an instrumental role in taking India to glory.

Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma finished his T20I career as the leading run-getter in the format, with 4231 runs in 159 matches. Virat Kohli scored 4188 runs in 125 T20I matches at an average of 48.7 and a strike rate of 137.04.

On the other hand, Ravindra Jadeja scored 515 runs in 74 T20I matches at an average of 21.16 and scalped 54 wickets at an economy rate of 7.13.

“Look, I think they have to appreciate, acknowledge, celebrate those three cricketers because they’re all amazing you know, players in their own right and coaching staff and going from a former player to a coach. Rahul Dravid and obviously the Hitman [Rohit Sharma], and Kohli, Jadeja, they have got amazing you know, players out there that have done the business for so many years,” Lee said in an exclusive interview with CricTracker.

Lee, who was known to clock more than 150 kmph during his heydays, added the Indian team will have their work cut out in finding like-for-like replacements for these experienced players.

“But now, it’s up to the next generation now. The thing with sport, you can’t play forever. You shouldn’t play forever and you shouldn’t want to hold back players either. So, when you’ve had your time in the sun, enjoy it, celebrate it, what a great way to go out with a victory, and now it’s over to the young generation,” Lee stated.

“They have kept Indian Cricket standards so high that it’s going to be easier for the players to come in but also I think somewhat harder as well because of those big shoes to fill, and they’ve got to step up to the plate and maintain that effort and that commitment that those other players have had,” the Australian pace legend further continued.

After the T20 World Cup win, India is currently taking on Zimbabwe in a five-match T20I series.