“Franchise success not a guarantee of international success,” Sunil Gavaskar on India’s new T20I captain Rohit Sharma

While Sunil Gavaskar is happy with the fact that the Indian selectors have backed Rohit Sharma to take India’s T20 international team forward, he has also stressed the point that success at the international level is not guaranteed for a captain just because he has achieved success at the franchise level.

According to Gavaskar, it’s the same as the playing abilities of the cricketers. Not every cricketer who does well in franchise cricket makes it big at the international level. The same goes for leadership. One might have been a great leader in franchise cricket, but international cricket is a different ballgame.

“Leading a national team is completely different. No matter how many titles you have won for your state team or franchise, it doesn’t guarantee success at the international level,” Gavaskar said while talking to India Today.

Gavaskar is, however, of the opinion that Rohit is the right man for the job and the selection committee of India has made the correct decision.

Sunil Gavaskar has liked the appointment of KL Rahul as Rohit’s deputy as well

Gavaskar also agrees with the decision of naming KL Rahul the vice-captain of the Indian T20I team, as he reckons Rahul is a strong contender to take over the captaincy of India in future.

Gavaskar opines that KL Rahul is developing as a leader, as he has captained Punjab Kings in the last two seasons of the IPL, and he is now an established member of the Indian squad in both white-ball and red-ball cricket. To have him in the leadership group and to get him ready for future leadership responsibility is a good call.

Punjab Kings have not made the playoffs under KL Rahul in the last two seasons, but Rahul has still seemed a very composed captain under pressure situations and has been able to defend a few low scores in the tournament. The 29-year-old classy right-hander comes across as a fine reader of the game.