Virat Kohli's Role In The Team Remains The Same - Rohit Sharma

Newly appointed Team India’s T20I skipper Rohit Sharma said that Virat Kohli will continue to play a similar role to the one he used to fulfil when he was the skipper. Following the conclusion of the T20 World Cup, Kohli officially stepped down as the T20I skipper with Rohit taking over the captaincy role.

In his first assignment as the leader, Rohit will be leading the team in a 3-match T20I series against New Zealand starting on November 17. Kohli has been rested for the series but when asked about his role when he returns, Rohit said:

“It’s very simple. Whatever he has been doing till now, his role in this team remains the same. The roles of each player change as per match conditions and all players, including Kohli, are open to that.“

“When you are batting first, the role is different compared to when you are batting second. Based on games that we are playing, roles will keep changing and everyone is open to that. I am sure when Virat comes back, it will only strengthen our team because of the experience and the kind of batsman he is, it’s only going to add up to our squad.“

We won’t follow others’ templates but will do what suits us best – Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma further insisted that the Indian team will not implement drastic changes in its approach to T20I cricket, despite calls from outside claiming that the team is not as aggressive as the others. Their approach has been termed ‘outdated’ but Rohit asserted that the team will follow a template that suits them.

“There are holes we need to fill up. That will be the biggest challenge for us. I’m not going to say that we are going to follow other teams’ templates. We will do what suits us best. The players play a different role in Syed Mushtaq Ali, franchises, and in the national team. We need to define specific roles for players,” Rohit mentioned.

India’s squad for the T20I series against New Zealand:

Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (Vice-Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Siraj.

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