[Watch] Rohit Sharma rolls his arm over ahead of India vs Sri Lanka second ODI
Indian captain Rohit Sharma was seen having a bit of a bowl in the practice session ahead of the start of play against Sri Lanka. The second ODI between the two teams is being played at the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Sunday (August 4).
In a video posted by Sony Sports Network on X (formerly Twitter), Rohit is seen bowling his gentle off-spinners. Here's what Sony captioned the video with:
".@ImRo45 rolling back the years with a few overs today? Count us in for that nostalgia trip 🙌 🤩"
Rohit Sharma had told the host broadcaster during the toss in the first ODI that he would not be needed to bowl as he had enough options in the shed. However, it will be interesting to see if Rohit practicing bowling is any indication of him having a bowl during the remainder of the ODI series.
India's interim bowling coach wants the batters to practice bowling
India's interim bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule had highlighted the importance of some of the Indian batters rolling their arm over and being available in case there's a need to bowl a few overs.
The likes of Rinku Singh and Suryakumar Yadav showed in the third T20I against Sri Lanka what they are capable of with the ball as they together conceded just eight runs in the final two overs, taking the game to the Super Over.
On this, here's what Bahutule told reporters:
"I think our batters are good bowlers as well, to be honest. You know their primary skill is batting, so at times, they don't focus much on their bowling. But they have the skills. You might have seen in the T20Is Rinku and Surya contributed with the ball. So, an opportunity was given to Shubman here."
He further added:
"It's going to be an all-rounder's game in the coming days So, if one or two (batsmen) from the top-order can bowl it will definitely help the team, of course, depending on pitch conditions and situations. Also, it will be a surprise element to the opposition, if a batter can bowl. So, moving ahead there will be ample opportunities for batters to bowl."
As far as the second ODI is concerned, Sri Lanka are 117/4 in the 29th over at the time of writing.