Indian captain Rohit Sharma speaks on the eve of T20I series against West Indies (File) At the pre-match presser, before India’s T20I series opener against the West Indies on Wednesday, skipper Rohit Sharma was asked about Virat Kohli’s ongoing batting inconsistency and what role should the captain and coach play when a great player like him goes through an elongated fallow period.
“If you guys (media) can keep quiet for a while, everything will fall in place. He (Kohli) is in great mental space. He has been playing international cricket for more than a decade. He knows how to handle pressure,” Rohit snapped back.
Kohli hasn’t scored an international hundred for nearly two-and-a-half years now. Maybe, it would be an exaggeration to say that he has been going through a crisis period as a batsman, for only a month ago he scored two half-centuries in the three-match ODI series in South Africa. But by his lofty standards, he has lost his consistency. Two ducks in three ODIs against the West Indies, the matches that preceded the T20I series, further attested that inconsistency. Over the last two years, his Test, ODI and T20I averages have dropped to 28.14, 39 and 49.50 respectively.
As the Indian team head coach Rahul Dravid had said during the team’s tour of South Africa, every cricketer, especially those who play for a long period of time, goes through such lean phases. But even batting maestro Sunil Gavaskar has observed, while commentating for the host broadcaster during the ongoing limited-over series, that Kohli shouldnt carry any pressure while batting. Gavaskar also spoke about how the former captain sorted out some technical issues that had crept in; a result of hard work at the nets.
IPL auction done and dusted
The T20I series comes on the heels of the IPL auction where some cricketers became millionaires overnight. Ishan Kishan for Rs 15.25 crore and Deepak Chahar for Rs 14 crore were the two biggest buys at the auction.
It was an emotional roller coaster, especially for the younger players. So after the auction, the Indian team management sat them down with a clear-cut message.
“Yesterday, we had a great meeting, which conveyed the message that focus should firmly be on the Colour Blue for the next two weeks. It was understood that the guys would go through some ups and downs and a lot of emotional feelings (during the auction). But it’s done and dusted. They are professionals and now it’s only about India. Nothing else matters,” Rohit said.
He was asked about Kishan, his Mumbai Indians team-mate. The skipper’s reply was sharp. “I don’t want to be talking about the IPL here. We aren’t going to focus on what they are going to do for their respective franchises at the IPL. The IPL happens for two months, we play for India for 10 months.”
Rohit admitted that India’s white-ball squads have “some holes” and the team management is looking to “fill the gaps”, with an eye to the T20 World Cup later this year. Players would be given specific roles but the process of zeroing in on certain players hasn’t begun yet.
“We will keep our options open for the T20 World Cup. Conditions will be different in Australia. Doors are open for everybody,” Rohit said.
As for his own fitness that had been dodgy over the last few months – a hamstring injury had ruled him out of the South Africa tour – Rohit said: “I’m following some specific drills to ensure that there are no injury concerns in the future. Am feeling absolutely fine. Then again, in this sport, injuries are bound to happen.”
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