The recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 didn't turn out to be a good assignment for the Indian stars Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. India lost the series to Australia after almost 10 years. The duo struggled a lot in scoring runs in the series; Virat managed to score 190 runs in 9 innings, while on the other hand, Rohit scored 31 runs in 5 innings. Despite Virat scoring a century in Perth, he struggled to score runs in the whole series and got out every time in the same manner in the whole series. Rohit was struggling so much that he opted to step down in the Sydney Test. With such performance from star players, the duo was advised by many to play domestic cricket to improve their performances.
Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar discussed the icon culture in the Indian cricket team and how it can destroy the team in the near future.
"The one foremost reason behind this is the icon culture we have in India and the hero worship of certain players. Be it 2011-12 or now, it's the same scenario that gets played out—iconic players featuring prominently doing the opposite of what they did their entire careers, thereby dragging the team down with their diminished performances."
Further he said,
"Thing is, when it comes to the big players, we as a country are just not able to stay rational. Emotions run high, and those in positions to take decisions on these players are influenced by this climate. Cricketing logic goes out of the window, and then the selectors hope the player leaves on his own so that they don't look like the villains who brutally ended the career of a great who millions of fans worship. They just fear the backlash."
"We don't realise how impactful the job of a selector is." - Sanjay Manjrekar
Manjrekar believes that a selector plays a bigger role than the head coach. The selectors can make a bigger difference to a team's fortune than any coach can, but that is only if they do their job in the right way.
"By sugarcoating the dropping of a player, the team management squanders the opportunity to make a critical statement—that it's about the value you add on the field and not your brand value. Actually, we don't realise how impactful the job of a selector is. He can make a far bigger difference to the fortunes of the Indian team than any coach can, that is if he does his job right. Our media gives the coach far too much attention and importance."
"But now comes the tough part: can the committee actually take a tough decision in sync with their observations? For Mr. Ajit Agarkar to take a pure cricketing decision, no matter who the player is, we have to make his job easier. Us, as former cricketers, the media, the administrators, and the fans, who are the most influential force, must put Indian cricket ahead of an Indian great. Australia does not wait for a player to retire; they drop him before he becomes a huge liability."