Virat Kohli should just focus on his batting – Misbah-ul-Haq doesn’t want former skipper to lead if Rohit Sharma is unavailable

Former Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq feels Virat Kohli should focus just on his batting and he shouldn’t lead India in the rescheduled Test match against England if Rohit Sharma is unavailable. Rohit is doubtful for the fifth Test match as he tested positive for Covid-19 on Saturday.

Kohli had relinquished Test captaincy after India lost the three-match Test series against South Africa by 2-1 earlier in the year. As KL Rahul is also ruled out due to a right groin injury, players like Jasprit Bumrah, Ravichandran Ashwin, Rishabh Pant, and Cheteshwar Pujara are discussed as potential names who can lead the team in Rohit’s absence.

On the other hand, it will be imperative for India that Virat Kohli bats at his best in the Test match against England. Kohli isn’t in the best of forms and he had scored his last Test century back in 2019 in the pink-ball Test match against Bangladesh.

However, Kohli scored a decent knock of 67 runs in the second innings of the four-day warm-up match against Leicestershire and he will be confident to deliver the goods against England.

Misbah-ul-Haq said while talking to ICA Sports’ YouTube channel: “The biggest concern for Virat Kohli is his form with the bat. He has been under a lot of pressure recently because of it. The team management must consider this before considering him for the captaincy as India need him as a batter.

“India should rather look to rely on someone who they think is the future. Virat Kohli should just focus on his batting as he will be an important pillar for the team in the absence of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul.”

Meanwhile, Kohli had led India in the 2021 tour of England and the visitors had taken a lead of 2-1 in the series. But the fifth Test match could not be completed due to Covid-19 cases in the Indian camp.

On the other hand, Indian head coach Rahul Dravid revealed on Wednesday that Rohit Sharma is not yet ruled out.

“Update on Rohit is that he is monitored by our medical team and we still got 36 hours to go. He is not yet ruled out. He will have a test tonight and in the morning to see if he is available. Of course, he will have to return negative to play the Test.”

The fifth Test match will be played at Edgbaston, Birmingham on Friday.