Former captain Sourav Ganguly said senior batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli should be part of the Indian team for this year's T20 World Cup.

Rohit and Kohli, who  have not played T20 Internationals since India's defeat against England in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup in November 2022, have made themselves available to be picked for the Indian T20 team for the upcoming three-match series against Afghanistan, starting in Mohali on January 11.

Ganguly called up on the selectors to pick Rohit as the captain for the T20 World Cup to be held in the West Indies and United States in June.

"Rohit should be the captain in the T20 World Cup," Ganguly said on Sunday.

He also backed the inclusion of senior pro Kohli, saying: "Virat Kohli also should be there. Virat Kohli is an outstanding player."

"Nothing will happen," he said when asked on the duo making a comeback to the Indian T20 team after a long gap.

Ganguly, who captained the country in 196 international matches, was happy with India's showing in South Africa where they bounced after losing the first Test to win the second match and level the series 1-1.

"India is a great team. If they lose one game, then people say a lot of things. But look at how they played, they won the ODI series, a 1-1 in T20Is and in the Tests."

• India's tour of South Africa