India’s newly appointed T20I captain, Rohit Sharma is jubilant with the scintillating performance of his team in his very first assignment as a captain. India whitewashed New Zealand at home after suffering a horrendous defeat against them in the Super 12 game of the T20 World Cup 2021. After completing the clean sweep against Kiwis at Eden Gardens, Rohit was ecstatic with the all-round show by the Men in Blue. Moreover, the Indian skipper emphasised on the importance of batting depth in T20Is.
“Teams around the world bat deep till No.8, No.9. Harshal, when he plays for Haryana, he opens the batting for them. And then Deepak, we've seen what he did in SL. Chahal was looking forward to bat as well,” Rohit said in the post-match presentation.
Furthermore, when asked about his favourite shot (pull shot), the 34-year-old revealed how he used to practice the shot on concrete pitches during his childhood days.
“I've grown up playing on a concrete pitch back in the day. Once I started opening a lot of things changed. Won't say it (playing the pull) comes naturally. I've practised a lot playing those shots. Some days it comes off very well but I've got out also playing that shot. That's why I say when you've got a certain strength, you've got to back it,” the Indian skipper revealed.
In their last 10 encounters in T20Is against the Blackcaps, India have won eight which includes a clean sweep of 5-0 on New Zealand soil as well. On the other hand, both the victories for the Kiwis came in the ICC T20 World Cups (2016 and 2021).
India will now face off Kane Williamson-led New Zealand in the first Test of the two-match series which will begin from November 25 at Green Park in Kanpur. New Zealand had rested their skipper in the limited-overs series while India’s big guns including Rohit and Rishabh Pant will miss the Test series. However, in the absence of Kohli from the first Test, Ajinkya Rahane will lead the Indian side.
