Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri highlighted a big challenge ahead of India’s new white-ball skipper Rohit Sharma as he and the team management prepare for the two upcoming ICC events in 2022 and 2023.
The Indian cricket team recently went through a major transformational phase. While batting legend Rahul Dravid joined the Indian team as the new head coach, on the other hand, Virat Kohli was replaced by Rohit Sharma as the new white-ball skipper for the team.
Rohit Sharma already kickstarted his tenure as the T20I skipper with a blockbuster note by defeating New Zealand with a 3-0 win at home. He is expected to begin his full-time ODI captaincy tenure with the upcoming 3-match ODI series against South Africa if recovers in time.
With two major ICC events scheduled to take place in the next two years, former Indian head coach, Ravi Shastri feels that Rohit Sharma will have to prepare a good bench of fast bowlers as the current squad is not getting any younger with time. Shastri feels it wouldn’t be wise to expect the similar performances from the current pace attack after two years. Speaking at Star Sports, Shastri said:
“I think to get the right blend of experience and youth, two years down the line, you need to start grooming some players. Think of two years ahead and yet have some experience. So, you might see some new talent; that will come through. The area which you need to look at is the pace bowling (because) they are not going any younger. If we expect them tobowl (2 years later) what they’re bowling now, it might not be the case,”
Further, Ravi Shastri mentioned that while the upcoming 2023 ODI World Cup will be played in India, it will be easier for Rohit Sharma and team management to take care of things but the Indian side will need to identify at least five good bowlers in the squad for the overseas conditions. He said:
“Therein will be the biggest challenge. To identify 5 good bowlers to play in ’23. It’s easier because it’s in India because there will be spin. It’s tougher when you go overseas. I think there will not be a problem for a year or year and a half, but after that, you will have to really start looking and grooming once you start traveling overseas again,”
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