Don't fear failure, Indian skipper Rohit Sharma tells team

Tribune News Service

Deepankar Sharda

Mohali, September 18

After an Asia Cup campaign in which the Indian cricket team failed to qualify for the final, the team management has told the players to overcome their fears in the matches they play before the T20 World Cup.

Having six T20Is to prepare before the team leaves for the T20 World Cup, Indian skipper Rohit Sharma wants the players to get out of their comfort zone and explore new possibilities — new strokes and new deliveries. The three-match T20I series against Australia starts here on Tuesday, and it would be followed by three T20Is and three ODIs against South Africa.

Sharma’s message to the players is to go out and perform without the fear of being dropped. “I wanted to bring security in the team that is why we announced the team for both the series before the World Cup. In Asia Cup also we more or less had the same team,” said Sharma during an interaction with media at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium here today.

“In these six games we want to keep trying what we can achieve with different styles,” he continued. “They should extend to their limits, or I must say overcome any fear in these six matches... It’s for both the batsmen and the bowlers. If someone is not conformable in playing a hook shot or a sweep shot, they should try their hand and overcome the fear...”

“When you go into the World Cup you should have all these answers,” added the skipper. “Same goes for the bowlers. If someone wants to start the spell with a yorker or a bouncer, he should not hesitate. We just want the players to be more expressive and in the process they will surely find many things. As a captain, I personally came to know about me and my players’ potential and our limits to perform under pressure.”

Asked if the team was not already experimenting, as in the Asia Cup, Sharma cited Virat Kohli’s example. “Virat Kohli went out of his comfort zone during the Asia Cup and played a rare sweep shot. We have seen his performance against Afghanistan, where he opened. So, it’s all about going out and finding ways of exploring ourselves,” he added.

Kohli as opener?

Sharma did not hesitate in calling Kohli a ‘definite option’ to open the innings, though he insisted that KL Rahul would be India’s first-choice opener in the World Cup.

“It’s always nice to have options available. We want the players to be batting at any position. When we try and do something new, that does not mean there’s a problem, it’s just that we are trying to explore,” he said. “We are not bothered about what others believe, we understand the quality of all our players and what they bring for us... We have not taken a third opener and Kohli opens for his franchise in the IPL, so he is a definite option.”

Were good in Asia Cup

Though India failed to reach the final of the Asia Cup, Sharma said the team played better with its new aggressive approach. “As I said, we are very clear... If we are 10 for three, how we need to bat. If we are 50 for no loss, how we need to bat. This has been discussed at length, it is just about executing now. If you see our Asia Cup performance, we posted par-plus or par scores in every match,” said Sharma. “In the game against Sri Lanka, we got 173, which was also a good total. The final over finishes are always dicey.”

“In the Super 4s, we had close encounters against Pakistan and Sri Lanka, it could have gone either way. You need a bit of luck as well — if not 100 per cent, 5 per cent definitely! Hopefully we will get that in the World Cup,” he said.

Notes from nets

• Virat Kohli was the first to go into the nets. He focussed on playing the pull shot off the fast bowlers and played attacking strokes against the spinners. He spent almost 40 minutes in the nets and had discussions with head coach Rahul Dravid and skipper Rohit Sharma.
• Pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar practised bowling yorkers and bouncers.
• Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav also spent quality time in the nets. While Patel and Pandya focused on bowling, Yadav tried a variety of shots, including his signature ramp shot.

Cool Arshdeep brings us variety: Rohit

Young Punjab pace bowler Arshdeep Singh, who was trolled mercilessly after a dropped catch against Pakistan, got further backing from team captain Rohit Sharma. “We needed a left arm seamer and he has done well in the IPL. He was involved in the system and bowled very impressively,” said Sharma. “The way he landed yorkers in extreme pressure in his first year of international cricket, it is not easy. He is a very smart guy and keeps things simple. We always wanted variety in our attack and we have that now. I personally liked his clear thinking and capability to bowl the death overs.”

No doubts over Yadav

With Mohammad Shami down with Covid, Prasidh Krishna injured and Mohammed Siraj playing county cricket in England, Umesh Yadav has been brought back into the T20 squad. Sharma called him an ‘obvious selection’. “See, Yadav may not have played regular cricket with the Indian team, but we just cannot ignore his performance. It was obvious to consider an experienced pacer like him, in absence of other young pacers,” added Sharma.

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