'I think he is brilliant leader' - Harbhajan Singh backs Rohit Sharma amidst captaincy criticism ahead of Ind vs WI Test

After the loss against Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) Final 2023, the entire fan as well as cricket experts have targeted Rohit Sharma for his style of captaincy and the way the team has been selected during his tenure as a captain.

Former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh feels Rohit Sharma's criticism is going 'overboard' in recent times, especially after the World Test Championship (WTC) final. His captaincy has come under the scanner as well with former legendary cricketers like Sunil Gavaskar also coming down hard at Rohit and his leadership qualities. But Harbhajan Singh reckons Rohit commands respect from his teammates and also reminded everyone that cricket is a team sport.

"I find people are going overboard, the way Rohit has been criticized - cricket is a team sport & one individual cannot take you from one place to another - didn't do well in the final, yes, you can talk about performance & move on but it's unfair to criticize Rohit alone, not scoring runs, putting on weight, not captaining, etc, I think he is brilliant leader,” Harbhajan told NDTV sports in an interview ahead of India's upcoming Test assignment against the West Indies on their Caribbean soil.

The legendary spinner also said that if Team India didn't do well in the WTC final, one can talk about that performance and move on from there. But ultimately it becomes so unfair when people criticize Rohit alone, that he is not scoring runs, putting on weight, not captaining well. The veteran spinner said that he believes that Rohit is a brilliant leader.

As per Harbhajan Singh, the current need of the hour is to have faith in Rohit and the ability the star India batter has in his leadership. The former India spinner also said he has played and watched Rohit closely as well as the way he controls the game. The Turbanator also said that it is genuinely unfair to judge Rohit on the basis of recent results that he has produced with the team.

The Indian team will be touring the Caribbean soil for two Test match series along with three one-day internationals and lastly, five T20 matches to conclude the tour.