We Have Not Done Much In T20 Format Recently Says Rohit Sharma
Mumbai: T20 series between India and Bangladesh starts tomorrow while speaking in press conference India’s stand-in captain Rohit Sharma addressed some important points.
He wanted to Improve Indian team performance in the T20 format as India is ranked at number 5.
Talking about the recent T20I success of India Rohit said, “We have not done well in the T20 format recently, probably we are ranked at number five in the ICC T20I rankings. We want to get that number a little higher. We want to be at the top in all three formats of the game. There is no reason why we can’t achieve that. We want to be well prepared come the big tournament.”
He also added, “we have looked at a certain number of stats on how we chase and set target. Our numbers are great when we chase down the total. We want to focus on setting targets and defending them. The last T20I we played at Bengaluru against South Africa, we batted first on a sticky wicket as we wanted to challenge ourselves before T20 World Cup next year. At the same time, we want to win games as well.”
While speaking about Bangladesh team he said “Bangladesh is a very very good team. All these years we have seen how they have performed, not only at home but also away. Especially against us, they have always put us under pressure. So there is no way we looked at this team differently. I understand they are 2 key players missing but they sill have quality in their squad which can upset any team on that particular day.”
Talking about the captaincy he said he just wants to carry forward where Virat has left the team. “ As a captain here is very simple because I am not a regular captain so I just have to carry the team forward from where Virat has left the team.”
He also added that there is an opportunity for youngsters to come in the team and grab their spots. He said, “Earlier there was no room for a younger player to come and take the spot as the team was settled but this is the best time for us to try out the young players.”
Speaking about both the wicket keepers Rohit and Indian team wants to stick with Rishabh Pant.
Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma also said India will be looking to give more opportunities to Rishabh Pant in the near future. The Asian giants “have moved on from MS Dhoni” but included young Sanju Samson in the squad for the T20I series after the Kerala batsman’s consistent run in the domestic circuit.
“Both wicket-keepers (Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson) that we have in our squad are pretty talented. We have stuck with Pant, this is the format that gave him recognition. We have to stick with him for a while, we know how well he can take the game forward if he has his day,” Rohit Sharma said.
India will be playing its 1st T20I on 3rd November at Arun Jaitley Stadium (previous Feroz Shah Kotla), Delhi. The second game will be at Rajkot and the final game will be at VCA Nagpur.
India’s squad for T20I series against Bangladesh: Rohit Sharma (C), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Sanju Samson (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant(wk), Washington Sundar, Krunal Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar, Deepak Chahar, Khaleel Ahmed, Shivam Dube, Shardul Thakur.
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