Former South African prominent all-rounder Lance Klusener backed Shubman Gill to lead the national team for years while also supporting the teen batting prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as a potential future superstar after Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s retirements across formats.
Speaking to IANS on the sidelines of an event organised by Abu Dhabi T10 League, the former South African cricketer asserted that the sport has repeatedly produced players capable of carrying forward the legacy of players who came before them.
“As good as Virat and as good as Rohit have been in the past, they will have to walk away from the game when their time comes. But the beauty of cricket is that it carries on. It gets stronger sometimes. When we played, people never thought that Sachin Tendulkar’s records would ever be broken. And people are challenging those already. So, players come and go. It’s a sad day when legends of your game and legends of your country step away. But on the bright side, there are always younger, fitter, faster players in the wings as well,” Klusener told IANS.
Further, Klusener termed Gill an absolute superstar with the willow in hand, adding that his main challenge would be to separate himself as a batter and as a captain to serve the nation with great courage and purpose for many years to come.
“For me personally, I’m convinced already. I think he’s the right man for the job. He’s an absolute superstar with the bat. It’s probably just about being able to separate Shubman Gill as a batter and Shubman Gill as a captain as well. I think all the great captains have been able to separate that. And I’m sure he’ll have a lot of opportunities and a lot of people to lean on to help him do that,” he added.
“But absolutely, I think he’s as good as it gets with a cricket bat. And captaincy, even for old-established captains, is something you learn all the time. He’ll do the same. So, I’m absolutely excited for him. I think he’s a superstar. He’s going to be someone who will serve India with great courage and great purpose for many years to come, hopefully,” he noted.
Additionally, Klusener stated that every national team undergoes transition whenever their main players bid adieu to the game, adding that Team India is facing that now with two stars Kohli and Rohit. He backed Sooryavanshi to emerge as the next superstar after both legends retire.
“It’s a balance. Every team is different. Every nation works the retirement of players differently, and players retire every single season. India are facing that now with those two stars. South Africa have faced that with stars that they’ve had as well,” he asserted.
“But cricket goes on. Stars come and go, and legends retire, and people think that it’ll never be the same again. But India doesn’t have to look further than a youngster like Sooryavanshi. There’s the next superstar,” he concluded.
