Former India captain Kapil Dev has made a big comment on Rohit Sharma after the crushing defeat in the second Test match against Australia. India lost the pink-ball Test match in Adelaide by 10 wickets. Following the defeat, the 1983 World Cup-winning captain Kapil Dev said that people shouldn’t doubt Rohit’s leadership abilities after just one loss. He also hoped for Rohit’s form to return in time for the third Test.

“He doesn’t have to prove himself. He has done this for many, many years, so let’s not doubt somebody. I won’t doubt him. I hope his form comes back, that’s important,” Kapil Dev said on Tuesday.

Rohit Sharma had missed the opening Test due to the birth of his second child. Despite scoring most of his runs as an opener, the 37-year-old dropped down to the number six position, offering the top spot to KL Rahul, who played a pivotal role in the Perth win.

Kapil Dev backs Rohit Sharma as captain

“With one or two performances, if you doubt someone’s captaincy, I mean, just six months back when he won the T20 World Cup, you wouldn’t have asked me this question. Let it go, knowing his ability and talent, he will come back. They will come back strongly.” 

Asked if it was a mistake to include young Harshit Rana in the second Test, Kapil said: “I am a nobody. How can I judge? There are people up there who have the responsibility to decide who should be in the team.” 

“We shouldn’t talk. My former colleagues are sitting there, and I hope they will do a good job.” In Rohit’s absence, vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah had led India to a 295-run in Perth.

Asked if Jasprit Bumrah is shaping up well to take over the reins from Rohit, Kapil said: “I think it is too early to talk about that. With one performance, you can’t say he is the best, and with one bad performance, you can’t say he doesn’t deserve it.

“Let a player play a lot of cricket, take on a lot of captaincy. Ups and downs will come, and then you judge a person by how he reacts in difficult times, not in good times. In good times, we don’t have to judge. When he is down and out…” 

Virat Kohli, who also looked subdued coming into the five-Test series in Australia, managed to hit his first hundred in 18 months in Perth. However, the star batter failed in the second Test with scores of 7 and 11 in his two innings.

“Like Virat Kohli, he is one of the best cricketers in our country. If you put the four top batsmen, he will be there. If he is going through a rough time, it is only up to him how fast he can bounce back,” Kapil said.

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(With PTI inputs)