England ke star batsman Ollie Pope ne bhi kaha hai ki Bharat ke young team mein talent aur depth toh hai, lekin Kohli ke slip mein khade hokar chirping karne ka aura koi bhi pura nahi kar sakta. Yeh baat dil ko chhoo jati hai kyunki Kohli ka josh, unki energy, aur unka opposition par dabav banana, yeh sab Indian cricket ka ek aham hissa tha. Jab Kohli slip mein hote the, toh unki awaaz aur confidence se opposition ke batsmen ke paon thartharate the. Ab, jab India apni nayi World Test Championship (WTC) journey shuru karne ja rahi hai England ke khilaf 20 June 2025 se Leeds mein, toh yeh kami mehsoos hogi.
Lekin is khali pan ke bawajood, Indian team mein naye khiladiyon ka uday ek nayi ummeed jagata hai. Shubman Gill, jo ab team ke captain hain, ek shandar batsman hain aur unhone apni leadership ka parichay IPL 2025 mein Punjab Kings ko playoffs mein le jakar diya hai. Gill ke saath Rishabh Pant jaise explosive players hain, jo vice-captain ke roop mein team ko aggressive edge dete hain. Pant ne IPL 2025 mein Lucknow Super Giants ke liye 118* ka dhamakedar score banaya tha, jo dikhata hai ki woh bade mauke par bada khel sakte hain. Yeh naye khiladi, jaise Yashasvi Jaiswal aur Sarfaraz Khan, apne domestic performances ke dam par team mein jagah bana rahe hain. India A aur Ranji Trophy mein inke performances ne selectors ka dhyan khincha hai, aur yeh log Kohli aur Rohit Sharma ke jaise bade naamon ka void bharne ke liye taiyaar hain.
Iske alawa, Indian cricket ka depth hi uski sabse badi taakat hai. Dilip Vengsarkar ne bhi kaha tha ki naye talent ke liye mauka banega, aur yeh log apne aap ko prove karenge. England ke khilaf 2021 mein jab India ne 2-1 se series jeeti thi, us waqt bhi Kohli ke leadership mein young players jaise Axar Patel aur Shardul Thakur ne apna jalwa dikhaya tha. Aise hi, ab nayi generation ke paas mauka hai ki woh England ke maidan par apna naam banaye. Shubman Gill ne khud kaha hai ki Kohli aur Rohit ka void bharna mushkil hai, lekin team mein koi alag pressure nahi hai. Yeh confidence dikhata hai ki yeh young brigade apne dam par ladne ke liye taiyaar hai.
England ke liye bhi yeh series asaan nahi hogi. Ollie Pope khud ek shandar form mein hain, jinhone Zimbabwe ke khilaf 171 runs banaye the, lekin unka No. 3 position Jacob Bethell ke saath competition mein hai, jo IPL mein Kohli ke saath khelkar seekh chuke hain. England ka team bhi apne challenges se guzar raha hai, aur unke liye India ke young guns ko underestimate karna badi bhool hogi. India ke bowlers, jaise Jasprit Bumrah aur Mohammed Siraj, abhi bhi world-class hain aur England ke batsmen ko pareshan kar sakte hain, jaise unhone 2021 mein James Anderson aur Joe Root ko bar-bar struggle karwaya tha.
Phir bhi, jab baat dil se dil tak jati hai, toh Kohli ka na hona ek chhoti si chubhan si deti hai. Unka Test cricket ke liye passion, jaise unhone IPL jeetne ke baad bhi kaha tha ki yeh Test cricket se “five levels below” hai, woh Indian cricket ke liye ek alag hi roshni tha. Ab jab woh slip mein nahi honge, na hi unki awaaz goonjegi, toh maidan thoda sunapan mehsoos hoga. Yeh nayi team kitni bhi talented ho, lekin us josh, us intensity ka ek hissa shayad hamesha ke liye chala gaya hai.
