File image of Virat Kohli.© BCCI/Sportzpics
Former Australia great Adam Gilchrist and former England captain Michael Vaughan had their say on a very tricky question. The duo - who appear together on the Club Prairie Fire podcast - were posed a question that is certain to divide the hearts of many fans. Start one, bench one, sell one between Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, for their own hypothetical franchise. Despite being given the Herculean task, Vaughan broke down the situation and gave a rather surprising answer.
"I'm playing MS Dhoni. I don't think anyone's been better," said Michael Vaughan, appearing alongside Gilchrist in an interaction with the cricket.com YouTube channel.
"MS is a captain," he reasoned, as to why he had picked him over Kohli.
"I'm getting rid of Virat. He's never won the IPL. Rohit Sharma is a six-time winner. MS Dhoni is a five-time winner," he said.
Vaughan said that Rohit Sharma would be on the bench for him, as a substitute for MS Dhoni.
Gilchrist added that 'selling' Virat Kohli would also earn their franchise a lot of money.
"You'll get a good price for Virat," said Gilchrist, to which Vaughan replied, "It's good business".
"I can get a load of cash for him (Virat Kohli). He'll go somewhere else for a huge amount of money," he added.
Surprisingly, Gilchrist agreed with Vaughan's opinion.
"I think that's well thought through. You're splitting hairs, it's a tough call on all, but that's the job of a manager," he said.
With the IPL mega auction for the 2025 season set to happen later this year, a lot of talk has gone regarding the retention rules. Whether MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli stick to their franchises is not yet a foregone conclusion. In fact, reports have also stated that Chennai Super Kings' decision on Dhoni rests on how many retentions they are allowed.