'We will give preference to....' Rohit Sharma makes a strong statement regarding selection of players
India registered a hard-fought victory against England in the fourth game to seal the series with one match to go. India returned strongly after being under the pump for the initial two days on the back of marvellous performances from Dhruv Jurel, Kuldeep Yadav, and Ravichandran Ashwin.
Following the game’s conclusion, the Indian captain, Rohit Sharma, spoke highly of his players, praising their character for standing tall amidst calamity. Rohit stated that Test cricket is the stiffest format, and players hungry to play Test matches will get chances in the national team.
“This (Test cricket) is the toughest format, and if you want success and want to excel in this tough format, then you need that hunger. It is very important. We will give opportunities only to players who have that hunger.”
Iterating his point, Rohit exclaimed they find out whether a player is keen to do well in arduous conditions. There is no point in playing without the hunger in red-ball cricket.
“You come to know the players who don't have that hunger, players who don't want to stay here. We come to know that. Players who have that hunger, players who want to stay here and perform, play in tough conditions, we will give preference to them. It is pretty simple; if you don't have hunger, there's no meaning in playing such players.”
I don't see anyone who doesn't have that hunger: Rohit Sharma
While Rohit Sharma’s comment might look like a personal grudge against any player, he added all current players have the hunger to represent the nation. The Indian captain accepted that opportunities are hard to come at this level, and the team management keeps track of players making an impact in their limited chances.
“At present, I don't see anyone who doesn't have that hunger. Those who are here in the squad and even those who are not here — every one of them wants to play. But the opportunities at this level come very few times. If you don't utilise them, then you lose that chance. We all have experienced that. So those players who utilise the opportunities, who make the team win, who perform for the team, obviously that is noted. That is very important.”
It has been a young unit, but Rohit feels they did their job perfectly. While accepting the challenges of Test cricket, Rohit lauded the efforts of his fresh players, labelling them “superb”.
“These guys who have come in have done the job perfectly. They have taken the responsibility perfectly, and you can take a lot of pride from performances like this with inexperienced players. Whatever you say, Test cricket throws different kinds of challenges and different kinds of pressures. But some of these players, the way they have dealt with the pressure throughout the series has been superb. A lot of these young guys have never played Test cricket before, never been part of the Indian dressing room.”
Rohit has all the reasons in the world to be a proud captain, and he has definitely enjoyed the win. The final game of the series will start on 7 March in Dharamsala.
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