Shoaib Akhtar slammed for wanting Rohit Sharma as India's captain in Australia Tests

Team India's split-captaincy debate has sparked ever since Rohit Sharma led Mumbai to their fifth IPL title. Fans, as well as, former cricketers and commentators have been weighing in on the debate, giving their views about the same. The latest entrant in this list is former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar who has suggested that the Australia tour might be the best chance for Rohit to grab the captaincy mantle.

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Shoaib Akhtar backs Rohit Sharma to captain India

While speaking to PTI, Akhtar said that Indian captain Virat Kohli, who is playing non-stop cricket since 2010 might be 'fatigued'. He added that Kohli has got 70 centuries and a mountain of runs under his belt and if he is feeling fatigued, then he should think about giving the leadership role to Rohit in one of the formats (preferably T20s).

The Pakistan veteran sensationally claimed that he could see the boredom on his Kohli's face during the recently concluded Dream11 IPL 2020. Akhtar reckoned it may be because of the bio-bubble situation but he seemed a bit stressed out. The former Pakistani cricketer opined that it all depends on how Kohli feels, however, he claimed that Rohit has been ready for captaincy for a while.

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Akhtar's comments on India's split captaincy debate didn't go down well with netizens on Twitter. Several reactions poured in as fans slammed him and asked him to offer his advice to the Pakistan team. Let's take a look at a few reactions.

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Shoaib Akhtar backs India to win Border Gavaskar Trophy

Akhtar also backed India to win the Border Gavaskar Trophy despite the return of David Warner and Steve Smith. The Australian mainstays were not a part of the 2018 Test series between the two sides as Indian won the series 2-1 under the leadership of Kohli. According to Akhtar, India have the ability to win again but he reckoned that if their middle order doesn't perform, the Men in Blue will struggle.

The former right-arm speedster stated that people will be watching this series with great interest including him. Akhtar said that the Day-Night Test will be India's toughest test in Australia. He claimed if India plays well in those conditions, then they can beat Australia. Akhtar also said that the first two innings of the first Test will tell where the series is headed.

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SOURCE: SHOAIB AKHTAR INSTAGRAM