'I'll bat above Jasprit Bumrah regardless of...' - Arshdeep Singh rebels against Rohit Sharma

Indian fast bowler Arshdeep Singh opened up about his proactive approach towards enhancing his batting skills during the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2024 after his Player of the Match performance against the USA in their Group A match on June 12 in New York.

Arshdeep revealed that he convinced Indian captain Rohit Sharma to allow him to bat at number nine in the high-voltage match against Pakistan in New York. Coming before Jasprit Bumrah, the star Indian pacer made a crucial nine runs off 13 balls with the help of a maximum to help the Men in Blue post 119 runs on the board against Pakistan.

Arshdeep Singh reveals his batting ambition after his bowling heroics in T20 World Cup 2024

Then, they successfully defended the paltry target to win the game by six runs against the Men in Green in New York on June 9. Emphasizing the significance of contributing runs whenever required, the lanky pacer revealed the ongoing process of refining all aspects of his game, including batting, bowling, and fielding.

After winning Player of the Match for his career-best figures of 4/9 against the USA, Singh expressed his commitment to continuous improvement and readiness to step up in different roles for the team.

As quoted by PTI, Arshdeep Singh said at the post-match press conference: “We are always learning, always trying to get better at all the skills, be it bowling, batting, or fielding, because you never know when the team needs those runs.”

Reflecting on his decision to bat at Number 9 ahead of senior player Bumrah, Singh explained that his recent experiences facing fast bowlers encouraged him to make that call. Despite initial surprise from Rohit and the Indian team management, he remained firm in his decision while backing his abilities.

Jassi Bhai was supposed to go before me: Jasprit Bumrah

He revealed, “Jassi Bhai (Bumrah) was supposed to go before me, but I just went in after asking Rohit Bhai. They were surprised with it, but I told them, 'I will go up regardless of whatever you say.' I will go at nine because I faced the quickest bowlers in the last game. So yeah, that's the plan now. I am very confident about my batting. And be it fielding or bowling, you just try to keep getting better.”

Looking forward to the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024, Arshdeep stressed the importance of adapting to different playing conditions, with upcoming matches scheduled in different venues like Florida and the Caribbean.

He revealed India's strategy of aiming for early breakthroughs when bowling or setting competitive totals when batting first, depending on the match situation and pitch conditions.

He signed off by saying, “If there is help in the wicket, we try to get early wickets and restrict the opponents to a low total and if we are batting first, we try to make as many as possible and give the bowlers good enough chance to restrict the opposition.”

Notably, India will play their final Group A game against Canada on June 15 in Florida before heading to the Caribbean Islands for the Super-8 matches of the tournament. India, Australia, South Africa, and West Indies have so far qualified for the next round of the T20 World Cup 2024.