There was no valid reason to sack Virat Kohli, remarks Salman Butt

With India’s semi-final exit at the T20 World Cup 2022, they missed another chance to win an ICC title since 2013. The Men in Blue were outplayed by England by a margin of 10 wickets as the opposition openers dominated the Indian bowlers. This was the first ICC event for Rohit Sharma as the captain of the Indian team and their elimination from the World Cup has raised several questions about his captaincy. 

Recently, BCCI sacked the selection committee and there have been several media reports stating that the board is looking at Hardik Pandya as the future skipper in T20Is. Former Pakistan opener Salman Butt has shared his views on the issue as well, saying there was no valid reason to sack Virat Kohli from captaincy last year. 

“When they had sacked Kohli, there was no valid reason for that. The reason was that he did not win an ICC trophy. How many captains have actually won the ICC trophy? Many have spent their entire career without it. Ab jeet liye? (Have they won it now)? He was a quality captain. He wasn't the only reason why the team had lost. It is not that the team has drastically improved now. If it was all about winning then it's not that Dhoni can't play in the T20s,” Butt said on his YouTube channel. 

"The format itself is so fickle and World Cups are happening so frequently and then you have various leagues going on in between. And above that if you have someone who is fit, ready to go and can lead you tactically then why not? Grooming can happen in bigger formats as well. But again it's all about their mindset,” he further said.

India won the series against New Zealand 1-0 recently under the leadership of Hardik Pandya. The all-rounder might lead the side in the future but winning ICC tournaments remains a major issue for the Men in Blue.