'If it happens, it will be clear that there is tension between Kohli and Rohit' - Salman Butt

The rumours of a rift between Test skipper Virat Kohli and limited-overs captain Rohit Sharma have been doing rounds ever since India lost in the semi-final of the 2019 50-over World Cup. While Kohli and Rohit have denied the claims, the rumours were ignited once again due to the recent captaincy saga where BCCI stripped Virat Kohli as ODI captain and handed over the reins to Rohit Sharma.

Former Pakistan opener Salman Butt feels if the BCCI decide to axe Kohli as Test skipper in near future and make Rohit as captain, it will confirm the rift between Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. “I don’t think it should happen; it won’t be of any benefit. But I can’t say whether it will happen or not. If it happens, it will be clear that there is tension between them and that they are not getting along very well,” Butt was quoted as saying.

“There can’t be any other reason to snatch the captaincy away from a captain who has won the most number of matches abroad among all other Indian skippers. One series shouldn’t affect his captaincy. I don’t think it will happen and the lesser they happen, the better. And if they happen often, then that’s harmful to cricket,” he added.

Meanwhile, team India have landed in South Africa and have begun their preparations for the Test series that gets underway on December 26 in Centurion. Rohit Sharma will not be part of the Test series as he has been ruled out due to a hamstring injury. KL Rahul has been named as vice-captain.