ICC ODI World Cup 2023: Rohit Sharma Expresses Excitement Of Playing World Cup In Front Of Home Crowd
Published - 07 Aug 2023, 04:57 PM
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India captain Rohit Sharma expressed his excitement about playing the ODI World Cup 2023 at home, mentioning that the team will receive support from the crowd at all the venues. Rohit Sharma highlighted that the Men in Blue won the World Cup the last time they played at home, in 2011.
India will host the upcoming World Cup in October and November, which will be the first ODI tournament played entirely in the country. India was also a co-host of the marquee tournament in 2011 alongside Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in 2011. The country also co-hosted the tournament in 1987.
Everyone Is Looking Forward – Rohit Sharma
Speaking at an ICC event in the United States of America as part of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Trophy Tour, Rohit Sharma expressed his eagerness to play at all the venues in front of enthusiastic crowds in India.
“I know for a fact that every ground, every venue that we will be traveling to will get massive support. You know, it’s the World Cup, so everyone is looking forward to this and the World Cup coming back to India after 12 years… you know 2011 was the last time we played a 50-over World Cup,” Sharma said.
“We played a 20-over World Cup in 2016 but a 50-over World Cup after 12 years in the country, people are quite excited and we can see the buzz already back home. I’ll be looking forward to playing in all venues. They all have their own charm and speciality, so I would like to embrace that,” he added.
The Men in Blue faced disappointment as they were knocked out in the semifinals after losing to the West Indies during the last ICC tournament hosted in India during the 2016 T20 World Cup.
Every Day Is A Fresh Start – Rohit Sharma
The Indian skipper recalled how he prepared before the ODI World Cup 2019, where he emerged as the leading run-getter in the tournament.
“Yeah, I know every day is a fresh day. Every day is a fresh start, it’s not like Test match cricket where you have the momentum with you and you carry the momentum to the next day,” he further stated.
“One-day cricket, limited overs format is like that, that’s where the challenge comes. You’ve to start fresh every day and you know that’s where I was.
“I was in a good mind space, I was feeling really good about my cricket, prepared really well before the World Cup and when you’re heading into a tournament like that, all you want to do is start well, mentally and physically fresh and then everything falls into place,” he concluded.
Rohit Sharma amassed 648 runs from 9 matches, setting a record-breaking feat with 5 centuries. India dominated the league stage but faced defeat against New Zealand in the semi-finals.
