India will miss Virat as batsman but not as captain: Gautam Gambhir

The Indian cricket team will begin its Asia Cup 2018 campaign against Hong Kong on September 18

Team India will be starting their Asia Cup 2018 campaign against Hong Kong on September 18. While the men in blue are gearing up for their next mission under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy, Indian veteran cricketer Gautam Gambhir believes that as far as captaincy is concerned, Kohli’s absence won’t affect team’s performance. However, he may be missed in the tournament as a top-order batsman.

Gambhir, in an Asia Cup special show on Wah Cricket, said, “If you ask me about the captaincy factor, I don’t see Kohli’s absence will affect India. Rohit Sharma is fine enough to lead.”

At the same time, he asserted that the team members have to take the responsibility if they aim at lifting the trophy. He said, “A captain doesn’t win you matches, a team does. You still need 10 other players to win the match.”

“If the bowlers take wickets, batsmen score and fielders hold onto their catches then I don’t think there should be any problem for India in the Asia Cup,” he added.

Keeping in mind the upcoming bilateral rubbers which team India is scheduled to play, the BCCI decided to rest Kohli for the Asia Cup. In his absence, Rohit Sharma will be leading the side with Shikhar Dhawan as his deputy. It will be for the first time that Rohit will lead the team in a major international cricketing tournament.

After their clash with Hong Kong, India will play against arch-rival Pakistan the very next day i.e., on September 19. Interestingly, there is a high possibility that India might end up facing three times in the Asia Cup if both make it to the final of the tournament on September 28.

India are the defending Asian Champions. In 2016, they defeated Bangladesh to lift the trophy under MS Dhoni’s leadership.