"Virat Kohli And...": Mohammad Amir Names 2 Indians Among His 3 Favourite Batters. No Rohit Sharma

While there is intense competition between India and Pakistan on the cricket field, there is often huge adulation shared between cricketers of both the sides. The same is the case with Pakistan pacer Mohammad Amir. Ex-India captain Virat Kohli has often lauded the fast bowler and the Pakistani has also admitted his respect for Kohli, the batter. In a recent video, Amir mentioned that he considers Virat Kohli and Babar Azam among his top-three favourite batters. Surprisingly, for his third choice he picked up the young Shubman Gill.

"Virat [Kohli], Babar is my favourite apart from T20s. He is my favourite in Tests and ODIs. Finally, Shubman Gill, as I feel he will be the next big thing for India in future, if he maintains his current form," Amir was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan on his YouTube channel.

As far as bowlers were concerned, Amir named New Zealand pacer Trent Boult as his number one choice.  "[Trent] Boult, he is number one for me, then Naseem Shah. These are bowlers, who I feel are complete bowlers and can play all formats. And third would be Mitchell Starc," he added.

The Indian cricket team will embark on a tour of West Indies next month. Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has questioned the selectors over the appointment of Ajinkya Rahane as vice-captain of the Test team for the upcoming tour of West Indies. 

While Rohit Sharma will lead the team in both formats, Rahane's appointment as vice-captain has raised several eyebrows. Rahane was recalled to the side for the WTC Final against Australia, and was India's top performer with the bat in the match.

"There is nothing wrong in having him [Ajinkya Rahane] as the vice-captain, but a missed opportunity to groom a young player. At least, tell a young player that we are looking at you as a future captain. So, he starts to think as a future leader," Gavaskar said on Sports Today.

The legendary batter picked not one but three players who can replace Rohit in the future. "One is Shubman Gill and the other is Axar Patel [as future captains] because Axar comes in leaps and bounds, he just gets better every match. Giving him the responsibility as vice-captain will make them think. So, these are the two candidates in my view. If there are others, somebody like Ishan Kishan, once he cements his place in the team. He can come in the reckoning as well," he added.

Topics mentioned in this article

Virat Kohli Mohammad Amir Shubman Gill Babar Azam India Cricket Team Pakistan Cricket Team Cricket