Rohit Sharma says he is ready to take up the T20 Captaincy for India

Rohit Sharma has had a very fruitful IPL campaign, not so much with the bat, but very much so with his captaincy skills. Rohit took the bold decision of playing at the number 4 spot, despite knowing that he wouldn’t have much time to practice for the Champions Trophy(as an opener) after the IPL comes to a close. Critics had questioned his move, as Rohit is probably the most prolific Indian opener right now, and hence it just didn’t make sense to push himself down the order, especially with the Champions Trophy round the corner.

But Rohit had other ideas. With Parthiv Patel providing brisk starts at the top of the order, he wanted to play during the middle overs to provide that stability to the Mumbai batting unit.

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Rohit’s captaincy has been lauded throughout as he has been in control of games all through, making shrewd bowling changes and coming up with good plans for different batsmen. With Virat Kohli failing miserably with RCB this time round, reports have started to spring up that Rohit Sharma could be next in line for the T20 captaincy.

Rohit Sharma too hasn’t shyed away from saying that he would be up for the challenge if and when it arises.

“That’s thinking too far ahead. I don’t think too far ahead. When the opportunity comes, it comes. I will grab it with both hands.”

Rohit Sharma was jubilant after Mumbai Indians’ triumph on Sunday, emphasising on the fact that getting the right combination in place was the key to winning the title.

“All three titles are special. All three titles – like the first one in 2013 (and) 2015 against the same opposition (CSK) that we played in 2013. I personally feel it is how you prepare at the start of the tournament, getting your combinations right and going on to the field. That’s the most critical part of winning the tournament. Individual brilliance can win you a few games, but what is required to win this championship is team unity, team work and intelligence.”

It seems as if Rohit Sharma has been enjoying captaining his IPL franchise and has learnt a great deal from doing so. An international captaincy opportunity could be far fetched at this stage but the selectors would be happy that they have a good enough back up.

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Utkarsh Bhatla