Samit Patel calls Virat Kohli master of chase
Samit Patel hailed Virat Kohli's chasing ability and Rohit Sharma's leadership while naming his 2027 World Cup semi-finalists.
Former England all-rounder Samit Patel has described Virat Kohli as the master of a chase and praised Rohit Sharma's leadership qualities. Patel said Kohli's ability to judge when to accelerate or consolidate is absolute mastery. He also called Rohit one of India's best leaders and highlighted his explosive batting at the top of the order.
Patel picked India, Australia, England and South Africa as his semi-finalists for the 2027 ODI World Cup. He noted that Kohli recently became one of the few batters to reach 15,000 ODI runs. Patel said the four players who will always be remembered together are Kohli, Joe Root, Kane Williamson and Steve Smith.
Rohit Sharma revealed this week that India's 1996 World Cup semi-final loss at Eden Gardens inspired him to take up cricket seriously at the age of nine. He said the crowd unrest and Vinod Kambli's reaction left a lasting impression that motivated his international career.
CricHubb Take
Patel's inclusion of South Africa alongside the traditional powers reflects a shift in how the 2027 tournament is being assessed after recent cycles.