The Indian cricket team is all set to lock their horns with New Zealand in the upcoming home series against New Zealand, which will kickstart from November 17. Rohit Sharma will be seen leading the team as the new T20I captain of team India.
Ahead of India’s three-match T20I series against New Zealand, Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid addressed the media for the first time as India’s T20I captain and head coach, respectively. Both Dravid and Rahul were asked questions on a wide range.
During the presser, Rohit was asked about the role of Virat Kohli in the set-up. Responding to this, Rohit made a heart-winning statement as he said that Kohli remains a very important player for the team.He feels Virat will help in strengthen team India’s batting line-up. said:
“It’s very simple. Whatever he has been doing till now, his role in this team remains the same. The roles of each player change as per match conditions and all players, including Kohli, are open to that,”
“When you are batting first, the role is different compared to when you are batting second. Based on games that we are playing, roles will keep changing and everyone is open to that.”
He added:
“I am sure when Virat comes back, it will only strengthen our team because of the experience and the kind of batsman he is, it’s only going to add up to our squad, “
Rohit also spoke about the need to define specific roles for players in T20Is. He said that he alongwith Rahul Dravid will stress on helping the youngsters to hone specific skills by playing similar roles in domestic, international and franchise cricket. He said:
“There are holes we need to fill up. That will be the biggest challenge for us. I’m not going to say that we are going to follow other teams’ template. We will do what suits us best. The players play a different role in Syed Mushtaq Ali, franchises and in the national team. We need to define specific role for players,”
Rahul Dravid, who was sitting right beside Rohit Sharma, has taken over the duties of Indian head coach from Ravi Shastri. Talking in the press conference, Rahul Dravid said that all the formats are important for his team and he would want his team to improve. He also asserted that the ICC tournaments are important and the team will prepare for them. He said:
“We don’t prioritise at all. All the three formats are equally important for us. Obviously, with ICC tournaments coming up we need to prepare for those. As far as vision is concerned we will look to improve overall,”
