IND vs BAN: Rohit Sharma ignores chatter, focuses on team’s winning mindset

India skipper Rohit Sharma (X/ImRo45)

Team India are busy preparing for the first Test against Bangladesh in Chennai, and Rohit Sharma addressed the media ahead of the two-match series. The Indian skipper emphasised that the team was focusing on their own game and not paying attention to what the opposition was saying. Rohit made it clear that the team’s priority is to focus on winning and playing good cricket.

“Everyone wants to beat India, It’s fun to beat India, let them have fun,” he said at the MA Chidambaram Stadium two days ahead of the match. “We’ll focus on how to beat them. We need to win the match and that’s what we’re here for. We can’t focus on what they think and say about us. When England came here, they said a lot of things too. But we didn’t focus on it. We needed to deliver results, and that’ll be our aim here as well - to play good cricket.”

This focused, no-nonsense approach has been the hallmark of Rohit’s captaincy. He also underlined that the collective goal is to win. “India has played against a lot of teams recently, and our combined aim is to win rather than keep thinking about the opposition,” he said.

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The skipper also spoke about returning to the fray after a break of over a month. “It’s always tough to come back,” he said. “The good thing is a lot of guys are experienced. This isn’t the first time that we haven’t played for a long time. That’s why it was important to have a camp in Chennai and we spent some good time preparing.”

Rohit also spoke about managing India’s bowling unit, especially with key players coming off intense schedules, and a five-Test tour of Australia on the horizon. He mentioned that the management has a plan in place to monitor and manage workloads to ensure that the players are fresh throughout the series.

“We’ll always have that in the back of our minds,” he said. “You want your best players to play every match, but that’s not possible. You need to manage your bowlers, we will monitor their workload and considering these factors, we will take a call.”

As India gears up for the Test, against a Bangladesh side that recently upset Pakistan 2-0 in their backyard, it’s clear that few stones have been left unturned as the new captain-coach combination ready themselves for a marathon season. A third successive appearance in the World Test Championship final, scheduled for next June, is the ultimate goal.

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