Shahid Afridi, former Pakistan captain, said that Indian captain Virat Kohli should relinquish his leadership role from all formats of the game and enjoy the remaining time of his career playing good cricket without any pressure. He further added that Rohit Sharma‘s appointment as India’s T20 captain will bode well for the country.

Speaking on the Samaa television channel, Afridi said: “I think he has been a wonderful force for Indian cricket but I think it would be best if he decided to retire as captain in all formats now,” Afridi said.

“…I think Virat should step down as captain and just enjoy his remaining cricket which I think aplenty. He is a top batsman and he can play freely without any other pressures on his mind. He will enjoy his cricket,” Afridi added.

Talking about Rohit Sharma‘s appointment, Afridi said that he has played with Rohit and is an outstanding player with a top mentality. Afridi played with Rohit for Deccan Chargers in the launch year of the Indian Premier League.

“His biggest asset is he can stay relaxed where required and show aggression when it is needed the most,” the former Pakistan cricketer added.

The Pakistani star said that Rohit has shown his captaincy abilities with his Indian Premier League franchise Mumbai Indians. “He is a top-level player with terrific shot selection and he has the mentality to be a good leader of the players,” he said.

Apart from the national team’s captaincy, the 33-year-old Kohli also stepped down as Royal Challengers Bangalore’s captain. He has also hinted at the possibility of him stepping down as ODI captain and will only focus on leading the Test team.

Kohli has not scored a Test century since late 2019.

The right-handed batsman’s last assignment as T20 captain was the ICC men’s T20 World Cup. India crashed out in the Super 12 stage.