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Rohit Sharma hasn’t had the best series so far in Sri Lanka with some dismal performances during the tour excluding the fifty at the SSC Colombo in the second innings and another during the second Test in the first innings. There have been calls of him being dropped from the Test side as he just throws away good starts.
Rohit talking to ESPNcricinfo said he doesn’t mind batting at any position, "See it's really what captain and management wants from this order. My preference is to bat wherever team asks me to. If you ask anyone, they are not going to say this is my number. Nowhere it is written in the world that No.4 belongs to this person, No. 3 belongs to this person. If you understand well and good."
When asked which was his preferred batting position was he said, "As a batsman you want to bat as up the order as possible to get more opportunities, to face more balls, and score big runs. Again, the management felt I should bat at five and they came and spoke to me and I was okay to do whatever they want me to do.
“The same thing happened to me in ODIs as well, they felt I should open because of whatever abilities I have. So I agree to do what they want me to do. I cannot have my own preference. It's a team game and you do what the team wants from you."
Whenever I bat I want to score runs: Sharma
Team India has no dearth of middle order batsmen, and fitting Rohit in the team is a very complicated issue. Asked if he was pressurized by this during every innings he said, "The pressure I feel will be on the management and the captain to decide the XI, not on me. I have to play my game when I get an opportunity. That's how I look at it."
Rohit has the tendency to throw away his wicket playing rash shots instead on holding himself back. He also went on to say that he will continue playing his style of cricket and will not change, "If you look at the game carefully the first morning I played that same shot with Pradeep bowling from that end, and I played a very similar shot which got me four runs. I am sure all of you sitting here, must have clapped… that's how it works. I will back myself and whenever I bat I have intent to score runs, not to just be there and survive.
“That's how I want to play my cricket and to stay ahead of the bowlers' mind. That's what I try and do always. Sometimes, that ball could have gone a little behind him, it could have fetched me six runs. Went straight into his hands. It's unfortunate. But that's my shot. I will keep playing it, it gets me runs also. As I said, I am not going to shy away from playing shots."
Rohit also said he doesn’t pay heed to the media reports which have been lambasting him on his performances over the Sri Lanka tour, "I have zero expectations outside. What happens (outside) is irrelevant to me, you know because what happens outside is not going to help my cricket. What is going to help my cricket is me working hard, doing what I have been doing in the nets and getting better as a player everyday. And I will stick to it.
"It has happened to me in the past and you know till you play it will keep happening as a sportsman no one goes through a very clean patch. They will have some sort of up and down in their career. I am no different and I can say things have been up and down, but as long as I am enjoying my cricket nothing can stop me.
“I am really enjoying with the boys, enjoying the victories we are having and yeah I am a very positive person. I look to think ahead what is ahead of me and going into this Test match again I wanted to make a contribution. You will not score a hundred all the time. Any sort of contribution that can help your team is more than enough for me."
Rohit Sharma needs to improve his Test numbers if he intends to be picked for future tours and show the team management that he can maintain his form over the longer format of the game. There a lot of youngsters and even people in the squad of 16 who would want his position and if he cannot sustain his performances he might just be pushed to the sidelines or maybe to even carrying drinks for the Test team!
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