Irfan Pathan urges Kohli, Rohit to continue playing domestic cricket
What's the story
Former cricketer Irfan Pathan has highlighted Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma's importance of continued participation in the domestic circuit.
He feels their presence is good for both budding players and domestic cricket in general.
This comes after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) made it mandatory for national team players to play domestic cricket after back-to-back Test series defeats against New Zealand and Australia.
Here's what the former cricketer had to say.
Continuity appeal
Pathan's call for continuity in domestic cricket participation
Pathan took to social media to express his views.
He wrote, "It's great to see youngsters playing with or against players like Virat Kohli & Rohit Sharma in domestic cricket."
He added that this was not a common sight in recent years but is now happening.
Additionally, he further hoped that the current Indian players would continue this trend of playing domestic cricket.
Ongoing involvement
Kohli and Sharma's current Ranji Trophy participation
Kohli is playing for Delhi against Railways at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in an Elite Group D match.
On the other hand, Rohit, who captains India in Test and ODI formats, played for Mumbai against Jammu and Kashmir in an Elite Group A clash last week.
Additionally, Pathan feels runs in the Ranji Trophy could do wonders for both as they are going through a rough patch with the bat.
Failures
Rohit Sharma suffered twin failures in Ranji Trophy
Earlier, Sharma didn't enjoy a return to the Ranji Trophy as he would have hoped for.
The Indian captain, battling poor form in Tests, managed three runs from 19 balls on Day 1 against Jammu & Kashmir in the previous round.
He scored 28 in Mumbai's 2nd innings on Day 2 at the Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy BKC, Mumbai.
Notably, Mumbai lost the clash against J&K.
Kohli
15,000 fans, pitch invader and Virat Kohli chants govern DDCA
Over 15,000 cricket fans gathered at Arun Jaitley Stadium to watch Kohli's return to the Ranji Trophy.
The former Indian captain is playing against Railways, his first First-Class appearance for the first time since 2012.
The Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA) had previously allowed free entry for the public through two gates leading to the Gautam Gambhir stand.
The match was also briefly halted when a fan invaded the pitch and ran towards Kohli.