‘The players play for him’ – Brad Haddin compares Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s captaincy

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma (Photo Source – Twitter/X)

Former Australia wicketkeeper-batter Brad Haddin believes that Virat Kohli changed how India approached a match and lauded the 35-year-old for bringing a fitness revolution to the national team. He mentioned that under Kohli, India never backed out of any challenge and were always up for a contest, which changed their brand of cricket.

Notably, under Kohli, India were one of the most dominating sides in world cricket. They won Test series against Australia away from home and against England, New Zealand and Bangladesh among a few others at home. India also reached the semi-finals of the ODI World Cup in 2019 but lost to New Zealand by 18 runs. He also helped the team qualify for the World Test Championship in 2021 but once again lost to the same opponent. Even without any major trophy to his name as Indian captain, Haddin hailed Virat for bringing necessary changes in modern-day cricket.

Also Read – Nasser Hussain compares Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s captaincy styles

“I thought Virat changed the way India prepared for their cricket. They became really ready. He held his playgroup to a high standard and he’s one of those captains who said I’m not going to get you to do anything that I’m not doing myself,” Haddin told LiSTNR podcast.

“You’ve seen the athleticism in the Indian cricket team change, and their mentality towards it. They were feeling energetic – their fitness and they dived when Kohli took over. And when they were up for the contest against Australia, he didn’t back down. He changed the modern game a lot in India and how India played,” he added.

Rohit is as good as you’ll get in India and non subcontinent conditions: Haddin

Haddin lauded India skipper Rohit Sharma and stated that he’s a player’s captain. He added that the 36-year-old is tactically very strong and is as good as one can find in India and on non-subcontinent surfaces.

“But on the other hand, Rohit Sharma is as good a captain tactically that you’ll see. He’s had a lot of success in the IPL. He’s captained there since Ricky Ponting left, and that would have been over 10 years. The players play for him and tactically, he’s as good as you’ll get in India and non subcontinent conditions,” Haddin said.