NEW DELHI: India's
T20 World Cup
squad boasts four all-rounders and captain
Rohit Sharma
on Tuesday emphasized their significance saying that the team management will look to utilize each of them effectively throughout the tournament.
The squad includes two pace-bowling all-rounders,
Hardik Pandya
and
Shivam Dube
, as well as two left-arm spinners,
Ravindra Jadeja
and Axar Patel, who can also contribute significantly with the bat.
In the pre-match press conference before the opening game against Ireland, Rohit did not dismiss the possibility of fielding all four in the playing eleven to bolster the batting lineup.
"If you want to create a good balance in a team, you need a lot of all-rounders. In fast-bowling all-rounders we have Hardik and Dube while Jadeja and Axar give us options in the spin department," said Rohit.
"How to use these four across the tournament. We have thought about it and we will decide how to use them depending on the conditions. How to use these four players, that is our focus.
"We have seen how big a role all-rounders can play in T20 cricket. Not just in T20 cricket, but in all formats. Their role will be more than the rest of the players.
"It is important that we can use these four players well. As I said, I don't know if we can play all four together. If we can, that will be good. If we cannot, even then we have to find our way," said the skipper.
The spin attack features wrist spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal, adding to the team's potency.
Rohit acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding the conditions and emphasized the importance of finding the best combination that suits the team's needs, whether it involves playing all three spinners or relying on the seamers.
"When we played the game with Bangladesh, all three spinners bowled two overs. It wasn't that easy to hit them. And in yesterday's match (SA versus SL), the spinners also took wickets. No one knows the conditions.
"The spinners will take wickets or the seamers will take. So, we possibly... We have to find the best combination and see what will suit our team. How can we keep our batting lineup longer? How can we have more bowling options?
"So, keeping these two things in mind, we will think of making a combination," he said.
India had the benefit of playing a warm-up match against Bangladesh before facing Ireland, Pakistan, and the USA in the tournament proper.
"Certainly it doesn't look like a place where you can score easily. So we've got to be a little mindful of that and see what best we can do. That is what the experience in the dressing room is all about and we have got a lot of that.
"We are all coming off playing in IPL where a lot of runs were scored, so it's important to have that balance, understand what is required here. It's certainly not going to be an IPL kind of scores here, so we are very mindful of that and we just need to assess as quickly as possible and then bring your game into the picture," said Rohit.
Rohit cautioned against expecting high scores similar to those witnessed in the recent IPL, given the behavior of the pitch at Nassau County ground on Monday.
The team carries the weight of immense expectations, having not won an ICC title since 2013.
They came close six months ago but fell short against Australia in the ODI World Cup final.
Rohit shared his thoughts on the team's mindset entering the tournament, emphasizing the importance of focusing on the present and playing as a cohesive unit.
"I have thought a lot about this thing. I am just going to go and play the way I can and get everyone together to play as a team. I will be focusing on that. Everyone in the team have their own way of dealing with tournaments like World Cup and I'm sure they'll take the right calls as well.
"But for me, it's important not to look too far ahead. Just think about what we need to do tomorrow, play the game well and then take it from there. Not think too much and put pressure on yourself," said Rohit.
He is also excited about playing in New York for the first time.
"We never thought cricket in America will be played at any given stage. But now that we are here, it's a different feeling, right? From the time you arrived in New York, pending only 10 minutes at immigration, which is very rare, doesn't happen.
"So you can make out that the buzz is there, even the locals here are quite intrigued by a cricket tournament happening, a world cup happening here, because we go to the cafes and all, there are a lot of locals who come there and wish us the best. We've been to Florida, but this is different.
"All of us who are playing here we will try to leave a mark on this city and the people of US as well," he added.
(With inputs from PTI)
English (US) ·