As India are gearing up for the high-voltage slugfest against Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2022 which will be played on Sunday (August 28). Meanwhile, on the eve of the blockbuster clash of the arch-rivals, India skipper Rohit Sharma gave a bold statement on bilateral series between the neighbouring nation.
In the pre-match press conference Rohit said, “If I had the option, I would have. It is up to the boards and the governments to decide. We reach where we are asked to. But yes if the board prompts us to play the bilateral series against Pakistan, we have no problem against it”.
India skipper also spoke about Virat Kohli while talking about the batting combination.
“The head coach will decide who will bat at what position. As far as Virat is concerned, I liked him at the nets. He hasn’t made any extra ordinary changes. He is coming back after a month-long break and looked fresh,” Rohit said.
The 35-year-old India opener also spoke at length on the following questions shot at him ahead of the all important marquee tournament.
On conditions:
“We have only seen the pitch yesterday. There was a bit of grass. I don’t know how it is going to be. Every team has the quality. So, we don’t know yet if it will be a spin-dominated tournament. Pakistan do not have Shaheen and we do not have Bumrah. But the rest of the guys will take their chances,” he said.
Mood in camp:
“It’s a fresh tournament, a new start and we are buzzing. It will be challenging to play against Pakistan without a doubt. Everyone is excited to be here,” he added.
On Dinesh Karthik
“He was brought back because of the ability he possesses. Before he was dropped, he played some crucial knocks. He has done that again now. That is why he is here”.
On the pitch:
“The talk I had with the curator, the toss would not be a factor. There hasn’t been much dew. But we will see how it goes today in Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan match and then take a call”.
On Playing XI:
“We haven’t decided on the Playing XI. tomorrow’s match will be played on the same pitch as today’s (SL vs AFG). We want to see how the match goes and depending on that, we will decide our XI”.
On keeping calm before big matches:
“There is no formula. Every player has their own process. They back their process as it has helped them succeed. I do to. We play so many matches in a year. It is up to us how we deal with it”.
India's squad: Rohit Sharma (c), KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Deepak Hooda, Dinesh Karthik, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan.
Pakistan's squad: Babar Azam (c), Shadab Khan, Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir, Mohammed Hasnain, Hasan Ali.
