Team India captain Rohit Sharma and chief selector Ajit Agarkar addressed the media on Monday afternoon and announced the 17-man squad for the upcoming Asia Cup 2023.
In a welcome development, India will be fielding a near full-strength team in the tournament as a couple of players returned after their injury layoffs. Middle-order batters KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer regained fitness and made their comebacks to bolster Team India's middle order, which has looked fragile in their absence.
Rohit Sharma was quizzed about India's long-standing issue in the number 4 position and the flexibility of the batting line-up at the press conference. The Indian captain explained that the openers, number 3, number 6, and number 7 are certainties. He opined that numbers 4 and 5 positions are interchangeable and depend on the match situation.
On the experiments in the batting order, Sharma further added:
"We don't do illogical things like sending the number 8 batter to open and vice versa. Ye pagalpanti nahi karte hum [We don't do such mad things]."
You can watch Rohit's hilarious response in the video below:
These next few months are critical to cementing his legacy as a leader: Ian Bishop on Rohit Sharma
Former West Indies pacer Ian Bishop recently opined that the coming months will be very crucial for Rohit Sharma to prove his credentials as a captain in international cricket.
In an interview with RevSportz, Bishop said:
"These next few months are critical to cementing his legacy as a leader if he can take some of that silverware back home. As far as leadership role is concerned, he is obviously aware that India with all its resources - playing and economic - the fulfillment of an ICC tournament since that Champions Trophy in England is something they definitely want."
He added:
"Rohit has been an outstanding batter and particularly if you talk about his record in the 50-over format. Has been a general of that format. Now he is making a really good fist of his Test batting."
Do you agree with Bishop's views? Sound off in the comments section.
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