'Should Be Judged By Performance': South Africa Great On Chatter Around Virat Kohli-Rohit Sharma's Age

Former South Africa all-rounder JP Duminy praised India's veteran duo of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli and stated that age should not be a criteria for a player's selection in the team. Duminy, who is currently the coach of Sharjah Warriroz at the ILT20, has himself represented South Africa in over 220 matches across all the three formats. The duo of Kohli and Rohit have retired from the Tests and T20Is and are only active in the ODIs, aiming to play the 2027 World Cup.

Speaking to NDTV on the sidelines of the ILT20, Duminy namedropped the likes of Faf du Plessis and Imran Tahir and stated that only the performance should matter while selecting a player in the team.

"At the end of the day, what are we judged by? We are judged by our performances. It doesn't matter age. I mean, a great example of it is Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir. I mean, Faf du Plessis is 41 years old and still doing great things on the circuit. Virat Kohli just scored a 100 against South Africa recently. Rohit Sharma scored as well," said Duminy. 

"And as long as you have those experienced players performing, they should be considered for selection. And if they fit and strong and have the strong mindset of wanting to do certain things, then why not?" he added. 

Duminy also reflected on Sharjah Warriorz squad and their preparations for ILT20. 

"Yeah, it's been good. I mean, this is my second season as head coach and it brings about a different change in that we've had the opportunity to have an auction. So, strategically, we've looked at ways of building a squad and we're pretty comfortable and happy with how things have gone with that perspective," said Duminy. 

Speaking about Sharjah Warriorz, the Tim David opened their campaign with a 39-run loss against Abu Dhabi Knight Riders on Wednesday. 

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team South Africa Cricket Team JP Duminy Rohit Sharma Virat Kohli Cricket