India Coach Ravi Shastri helped Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to talk out their differences during quarantine and strengthen the bond.
Staying in the bio bubble for extended periods of time during Coronavirus pandemic is extremely difficult for players but turns out it has its own perks. As in this case, Indian Cricket’s two stalwarts, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma seem to have renewed their friendship, one that appeared strained by some social media reports. The quarantine has provided them with a space and opportunity they need to sit together and talk.
In the last few years, there have been continuous reports of a major rift between these two powerful figures in Indian Cricket. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli reportedly had certain disagreements regarding the ways things are done in the team. The Social media had been buzzing with the rumours that the two senior cricketers don’t get along but the recently concluded England series has brought a great news for Indian fans.
According to a report in The Times of India, the two superstars with the intervention from the team management and coach Shastri, have talked their issues out and have forged an even stronger bond.
A source told TOI that the biggest gain from the time spent together in the bubble in the Indian dressing room was that a lot of personal bonding took place. Compared to before, the players are more united and more in sync with their thoughts and processes. Responsibilities and challenges have become easier with shared workload and more communication. According to the source the biggest takeaway from the time spent in the bubble has been this rapport.
All the chatter from the outside was causing too much bitterness and all the hearsay was making things worse. It’s been the story of Indian cricket for far too long – of vested interests time and again taking advantage of rivalries between players. Like all professionals, Virat and Rohit too would have their disagreements from time to time. But until recently, they never thought of sitting down and talking it out with the kind of clarity that is now visible,
the source added.
The ‘conspiracy theories’ must stop
When a team has two successful centre figures, there are bound to be some differences. But in this age of social media, everything gets exaggerated with added spice. The conspiracy theories get spread and this does more damage than the actual issues.
Rohit and Virat have made conscious efforts to put an end to these theories. They have not only sorted their issues out behind the scenes but have also spent a lot of time with each other on the camera, be it through tactical discussions, team pictures or in other ways.
They’ve spent a lot of time talking to each other in public, like during the post-match presentation at the end of the T20 series. They’ve been appearing in photographs together a lot more than in the past. During the One-day series, Virat made it a point to keep his discussions on with Rohit constantly during the game. These things would happen earlier too, but this one time they’ve decided to make it more visible for outsiders to know that all this chatter now needs to stop,
the source explained.
The duo opened the batting together, relied on each other’s tactical advice, and have done everything to understand each other better. The two giants of the sport renewing their bromance and being on the same page is great news for Indian cricket as well as fans.
