T20 World Cup Debacle: Speak Up & Face The Nation, Azharuddin Tells Virat Kohli

Hyderabad: Like after every debacle of the Indian cricket team, the captain is facing the heat.

Cricket pundits and armchair experts are bombarding Virat Kohli with questions after India suffered a second successive mauling in the T20 World Cup, thereby seriously jeopardizing chances of qualifying for the semifinals.

A week after being thoroughly outplayed by 10 wickets by arch-rivals Pakistan, the Men in Blue slumped to an 8-wicket defeat at the hands of New Zealand on Sunday night in Dubai.

Why was Rohit Sharma demoted to No. 3, why did Kohli bat at No. 4, why wasn’t Ravichandran Ashwin included in the playing XI, why did Kohli say at the post-match presentation that the team was not brave enough?

The skipper, who will quit captaincy in T20 Internationals after the ongoing World Cup, was not available to answer these questions because he skipped the post-match press conference and sent leading bowler Jasprit Bumrah instead.

And that’s what has irked former India captain Mohammed Azharuddin, who feels Kohli should have spoken up about what went wrong.

“There is no shame in losing. But you need to come and speak up. That is the right thing to do. People will listen to you and at least get to know the reason behind the loss. There is a difference between (Jasprit) Bumrah speaking or a coach/captain speaking. It is important to face the public. You will have to face the nation and come and speak. If you don’t come, what will people think? Needless rumours are going to be spread,” Azharuddin was quoted as saying on ABP News.

Azharuddin, who led India in the 1992, 1996 and 1999 ODI World Cups, further said that the captain has to shoulder responsibility.

“If you are the captain, you should take responsibility. When you become the representative of the team, this will happen. If you come attend conference after winning in good times but not after losing in bad times, that isn’t the right approach. I don’t know the reason why he didn’t come, but he should have,” Azharuddin pointed out.