India’s premier batsman especially in the limited overs format, Rohit Sharma is ecstatic after making a return to the Indian Test squad for the series against Sri Lanka. This is the first time Rohit is in the Test squad after playing his last test against New Zealand in October last year. He underwent a thigh injury which forced him to miss out the series against England, Bangladesh and Australia.
The right hander made a comeback to the national squad in the Champions Trophy and looked in good touch. Virat Kohli and Co received a huge setback when KL Rahul was ruled out of the opening Test due to fever and with Murali Vijay already out of the squad, Rohit might be a strong contender in the middle order.
The team management has players like Shikhar Dhawan, Abhinav Mukund and Cheteshwar Pujara who can open the batting and in that case, Rohit might have to wait to get a place in the playing XI if the team management decides to go with 5 bowlers.
“I know what I have to do as an individual. It is a great feeling of getting back to the whites. The last Test that I played was in October. So, it’s almost been a year,” Sharma was quoted as saying to bcci.tv. during an exclusive interview. Rohit added that he will be looking to play his natural game won’t set any specific goals which are bound to put more pressure on himself.
“I would like to stick to my strengths and the way I have been preparing over the years for Test matches and ODI cricket. I guess setting goals and thinking about benchmarks will only add pressure to your performance when you are out in the middle,” he said.
“I don’t want to add different sorts of pressure about thinking that I have to score runs. I would rather just go out in the middle and try and enjoy the game. I have been doing that ever since I started playing and it’s not going to change,” he further added. When asked if he wants himself to be recognised as a Test cricketer Sharma said that all he wants is to win more and more matches for India.
“I try not to look into those things. At the end of the day, I want to be a big-match winner for the team. That’s what I am looking forward.Yes, I want to be a successful cricketer but at the same time, what’s more, important for me is that how much matches I have won for the team,” Sharma concluded.