Former Indian fast bowler Zaheer Khan wants Rohit Sharma to lead India ahead of Hardik Pandya in the 2024 T20 World Cup. Khan wants the team management to back experience and feels Rohit will be the ideal fit for the leadership role.

Rohit has all the experience under his belt and he has led Mumbai Indians to five titles in the IPL. Meanwhile, Rohit also led India to the final of the World Cup but they could not cross the final hurdle against Australia.

Rohit has amassed 3853 runs in 148 T20I matches at an average of 30.82 but he last played for India in the 2022 T20 World Cup, where India lost in the semifinals against England. Since then Hardik Pandya has been leading the team in the shortest format of the game.

Meanwhile, Rohit scored 597 runs in 11 matches of the World Cup 2023 at an average of 54.27 and a blistering strike rate of 125.95. The talisman scored three fifties and one century in the ODI showpiece.

“Well, because the T20 World Cup is just around the corner and there is not a lot of time, so you have to go in with experience. You will have to give that preference to the experienced guy and I will not be surprised if they decide to go ahead with Rohit Sharma himself,” said Zaheer Khan on Cricbuzz.

“He’s the guy who has been around for a while. He understands handling situations, handling pressure, all those kind of aspects. You still have time for all these other names that are there in that list to take the mantle forward.

“It’s just around six months times (for the World Cup to begin). You have a big tournament like the IPL in between which will give them enough time to prepare. So it’s either going to be Rohit Sharma or depending on how Hardik goes about his rehab, comeback. The challenge is that he’s not going to be playing that many games,” he added.

Rohit Sharma will certainly add a lot of value with his experience and it will be interesting to note if he returns to the T20I team.