Who is captaining India in the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli?

Who is captaining India in the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli: The visitors are currently being led by a third captain on this tour.

During the fifth T20I of the ongoing India’s tour of New Zealand in Mount Maunganui, stand-in India captain Rohit Sharma hasn’t taken the field in the second innings after getting injured while batting in the first one.

Sharma, who came in to bat at No. 3 for the second time in his T20I career, scored his 21st half-century before succumbing to a calf injury. It was in the 17th over that Sharma eventually decided to walk-off after visible discomfort.

Having scored 60* (41) with the help of three fours and three sixes, Sharma top-scored for India after he won the toss and chose to bat.

ALSO READ: Why is Virat Kohli not playing in the fifth T20I?

A clinical bowling effort from the hosts reduced India to 163/3 in their allotted quota of 20 overs. With bowling figures of 4-0-25-2, New Zealand pacer Scott Kuggeleijn was the pick of their bowlers. Apart from Kuggeleijn, Hamish Bennett also picked up a wicket.

Who is captaining India in the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli?

In what seems more of a precautionary measure, Sharma not taking the field in the second innings required India to field a third captain on the tour.

It is worth mentioning that the onus of leading the team fell on wicket-keeper batsman Lokesh Rahul. Given the numerous roles that Rahul has played for India in white-ball cricket of late, captaining the side was perhaps the only thing left from his usual skills.

KL Rahul is leading the Indian team today in the absence of Kohli and Rohit. It’s a great opportunity for Namma Huduga to showcase his captaincy skills !! Keep going, Rahul #NZvIND

— Karnataka Ranji Team║ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ ರಣಜಿ ತಂಡ (@RanjiKarnataka) February 2, 2020

Having scored 224 runs in five T20Is at an average of 56 and a strike rate of 144.51 including two half-centuries, Rahul is currently the highest run-scorer in the series. This series has also seen the 27-year old player become the highest run-scorer for India in a bilateral T20I series.

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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