"Rohit has encouraged them to play their shots" - Sanjay Bangar praises Indian skipper for allowing the side to play without inhibitions
Former Indian batting coach Sanjay Bangar praised skipper Rohit Sharma for allowing the players the freedom to play without any inhibitions. The commebts came following their second consecutive dominant victory against Afghanistan in the 2023 World Cup.
Rohit has epitomized the all-out attack mantra over the last two years, evidenced by his strike rate ballooning to 114 since 2022. The 36-year-old batter adopting that approach has had a tremendous rub-off effect on the rest of the players, who can express themselves consistently.
On the Star Sports Follow the Blues, Bangar was quoted as saying:
"If a player is hesitant to play his shots, then he will never be in a position to play according to his game plan. Rohit has encouraged them to play their shots, and told them at the most what’s going to happen is they are going to get out, nothing else."
Bangar also mentioned that a similar mindset has been developed amongst the bowlers by skipper Rohit Sharma.
"And if it’s a bowler, the worst is probably he’ll go for a few extra runs. That helps the players to develop a mindset where one can tame their fears, and helps them play their natural game. So he gives them the advantage of believing in themselves, by giving them freedom and backing," Bangar added.
Team India has been in magnificent form, winning the Asia Cup and the ODI series against Australia that followed.
Rohit Sharma broke a flurry of records in the side's latest win against Afghanistan, becoming the joint-fastest to 1,000 World Cup runs. He also broke Sachin Tendulkar's record for the most World Cup centuries with seven tons.
"We’ll have not 2 or 3, but more than 5 match winners" - Sanjay Bangar
Sanjay Bangar cited the examples of former opening batter Virender Sehwag and wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant as the ideal mindset for being match-winners.
While Sehwag batted at a strike rate of over 82 even in Tests, Pant has struck his runs at a 73.63 strike rate in the red-ball format. The duo was often able to play their shots from the outset, even in Tests, a license Bangar feels should be given to several other players for producing more match-winners.
"If one does get out playing bad shots in a couple of matches, it does hurt. Two players come to mind as the biggest example for this is Virender Sehwag. When he used to play his shots he looked fabulous, but he even got out playing unusual strokes. Rishabh Pant is also very similar. If that kind of mindset is developed amongst all players in the team, we’ll have not 2 or 3, but more than 5 match winners," Bangar said.
Rohit Sharma and company are one of the only four sides to remain undefeated after their first two games of the World Cup.
Team India will next face off against Pakistan in Ahmedabad on Saturday, October 14.