Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma did not participate in Duleep Trophy© BCCI/Sportspics
Team India won the first Test match played against Bangladesh at Chepauk by 280 runs, but this result did not hide some issues. Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant, Shubman Gill and Ravindra Jadeja performed brilliantly in the first match of the series, but the performance of veterans like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma was below expectations. Both Virat and Rohit failed to score big in two innings, which suggested that they should not have left the Duleep Trophy.
Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar gave a candid assessment of the situation and accused the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) of treating players differently based on their stature and reputation.
“I am not concerned but I am sure someone would have looked at the fact that they would have been better off if they played some red-ball cricket. They had the option of being selected in the Duleep Trophy. So one should be careful about treating some players differently and do what is best for Indian cricket and the player. Virat and Rohit not playing (the Duleep Trophy) was not good for Indian cricket, nor was it good for the two players. If they had played the Duleep Trophy and spent some time in red-ball cricket, things would have been different,” Manjrekar said on ESPNcricinfo.
Although Manjrekar has no doubts about Kohli and Rohit's ability to bounce back, he believes the 'special treatment' that some stars get in the Indian team is a problem that has been going on for a long time.
“But they have the class and experience to come back later in the series and I don't think that's the reason they won't be in form. But one thing everyone should pay attention to, and that has been a problem with Indian cricket for a long time, is that certain players are singled out for special treatment because of their status, which ultimately hurts that player more than anyone else,” he added.
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