Sehwag seconds Smith, says no one to check skipper

New Delhi, January 23 

Virender Sehwag has once again trained his guns on Virat Kohli, saying currently there is no one in the team who can stand up to the India skipper and point out his mistakes on the field. Sehwag had earlier attacked the India captain for his selection policy. “I think Virat needs some players who can point out his mistakes on the field,” Sehwag told a news channel. “Every team has four-five players who advise the skipper and help him avoid mistakes on the field. I don’t see that in the current Indian squad. There’s no one in the squad who can challenge Kohli’s selection decisions in the dressing room. No player is up to his standard.” 

Sehwag said Kohli’s captaincy is being affected by his own expectations from other players. “Virat Kohli has reached a level where he can play well in adverse situations and he expects the same from rest of the squad,” the former swashbuckling opener said. “However, other players in the squad haven’t reached the stature where Kohli already is. This is affecting his captaincy.”

According to Sehwag, all Kohli wants is to see other Indian batsmen score fearlessly like him. “Kohli is just asking them to make runs like he does. And there’s nothing wrong with it. I remember when Sachin Tendulkar was the captain, he used to ask other batsmen to score runs. He was like, ‘If I can score, then why can’t you’?” 

Sehwag strongly believes that Kohli must be getting advice from the coach but is not implementing it on the field. “It’s important to sit together, talk and make a strategy for the upcoming Test. No single player can lead you to victory, teamwork is important. Every player has to contribute,” said Sehwag. — PTI