Skipper Rohit Sharma led India to 7th Asia Cup title. (Source: AP)
In the absence of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma led India as captain to their 7th Asia Cup title on Friday with a victory over Bangladesh in the final. Coach Ravi Shastri was quick to point out Sharma’s ability to remain calm on the field at the press conference. The 31-year-old, on being asked about the same, said he learned from former captain MS Dhoni on how to maintain calm in tense situations and has imbibed similar qualities in himself. “Whatever I have seen of him (Dhoni) leading the side for all these years, he never panicked, took time while taking decisions. There are those similarities in me too,” Sharma told reporters at the press conference after the final match.
“I also try to first think and then react. Yes, 50-over cricket gives you time but still you need to take time as well. I have learned this from seeing him, we have played for so many years under his captaincy,” he added.
The right-handed batsman further added that Dhoni is always ready to pitch in with advice on the field. “Whenever there is something, he is ready with advice. We always keep on learning from Dhoni bhai because he has been such a great captain. Whenever there were questions or doubts on the field, he was always there to answer,” he said.
‘Ready to be full-time Captain’
India skipper Rohit Sharma lifts Asia Cup trophy. (Source: BCCI/Twitter)
On being questioned whether he is ready to take on the captaincy role full-time, Sharma, who has won three IPL trophies as captain with Mumbai Indians, and also won the Nidahas T20 trophy back in March, said he will be up for the task whenever the opportunity comes his way. “Definitely. We have just won so I will surely be ready (for captaincy). Whenever the opportunity comes, I will be ready,” he said.
Sharma further added that there is a challenge whenever few senios players are rested. It’s a challenge for any team when few of your senior players are rested. Obviously, they will make a comeback and few of the guys have to miss out. Every team is doing that and also guys understand that. It’s up to them whenever they get an opportunity they make it big and make it count but for us — myself as a captain and our coach, we have to make sure that they have the liberty to go out and play their game without feeling any pressure,” he said.
He further added that he tried to ensure that players are not dropped after one bad performance. “When we came here, I wanted to give them the assurance that they will be playing all games. That’s how you make players. If you know after two games you are going to get dropped, it’s not easy for any player. I wanted to give everybody a fair run and play more games. That’s how you understand a player’s capabilities. One odd game, you can’t judge a player,” he said.
Talking about the tournament, Sharma said that his side ticked all the boxes. “I understand the dynamics of this team, how we play our cricket and how we want to go forward as a team. I think in this tournament we have ticked all the boxes,” he said. But he acccepted that India might need to sort out their middle-order woes before the start of the 2019 World Cup.
India celebrate after winning the Asia Cup trophy. (Source: AP)
“Numbers four and six need to get more games as the World Cup comes closer. Right now is not the time. Come the World Cup, we will get a clearer picture. The next few tournaments, that will be ideal for us to judge as management where they stand as players,” he said.
Speaking about the conditions in Dubai, the batsman said that he was proud of yoinger players for getting quickly adapted to the weather. “It was very young team that we brought here. Not many boys had the experience of playing in these conditions. It was hot. It wasn’t easy for the boys to adapt because they had come from England. It was very important to get used to the conditions. But I think overall, our preparation for this tournament was good. Seven-eight guys came here early while the other boys from England landed here a day before the tournament,” he said.
“The message was to focus on the fitness because we haven’t played in conditions like this before. I think this was a big challenge for us. The conditions here were quite slow and there was help for the slow bowlers,” Sharma added.
India defeated Bangladesh by three wickets in a thrilling final that went right down to the final ball to clinch the title.