'Play like you are known to play; the talks on the outside are immaterial for us'- Rohit Sharma's message to his teammates
India's new ODI and T20I skipper Rohit Sharma has stressed the importance of cutting off the outside noise to focus on the task at hand. He wants his teammates to prioritize delivering for the team to the best of their abilities.
In a video uploaded by the BCCI on its Twitter handle, Sharma admitted that there is always high pressure whenever the Indian team takes the field. But Sharma believes his players should focus on things that are in their control
The Indian ODI and T20I captain said:
"When you are playing for India, there will always be high pressure. But for me, personally, as a cricketer, it is important for me to focus on my job, not to focus on what people are talking around because you can't control that. And that is the message to the team as well. Even the team understands that. When we are playing a high profile tournament, there will be a lot of talks."
Sharma added:
"It is important for us to focus on what we have in hand, which is to go and win games. Play like you are known to play. The talks on the outside are immaterial for us," he added.
🗣️🗣️ "The pressure will always be there. As a cricketer, it is important to focus on my job."
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Sharma, who took over the T20I reign from Virat Kohli after the T20I World Cup, was appointed India's ODI skipper last week. He will kickstart his tenure as full-time skipper in the 50-over format with the upcoming three-match ODI series in South Africa.
'It's important what we think of each other'- Rohit Sharma
A hallmark of a successful side in most cases is that players have mutual trust and enjoy a strong bond with each other. It is something Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid are keen to inculcate in the set-up ahead of future assignments.
"It's important what we think of each other. We want to create a strong bond between the players and that is what will help us do what we want to. And Rahul bhai (Dravid) will help us achieve that," said Rohit.
Rohit previously led India to the Asia Cup title in 2018. Indian fans will be looking to him to retrieve the ODI World Cup when the tournament is held in 2023 in India.