India's skipper Rohit Sharma said will play a major role in the T20 World Cup 2024 in the USA and the West Indies as the 2007 champions gear up to play their opening game.
Sharma and Co. will take on Ireland on Wednesday at Nassau County Cricket Stadium, where the surface is heavily on the slower side. Speaking about the same, Rohit oozed confidence and clarified that they have a strong squad that can adapt to any condition.
The 37-year-old is open to play both Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel. He also believes that pace-bowling all-rounders like Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube can prove useful as the tournament progresses.
“The spinners will have a role to play, a big one. Our spinners are all-rounders, Axar and Jadeja. They are required for a good balance of the team. In pace bowling all-rounders, we have Hardik and Shivam. We will think about how to use them in the tournament, as it progresses.” Rohit said in the pre-match press conference.
Rohit remarked that Ireland have an excellent squad and can present a significant challenge in the match. He noted that many Irish players participate in various T20 leagues around the world, which might give them an edge. He added that Team India will need to be at their best to come out on top.
“It is going to be a great game, they have a great team. They play a lot of T20 cricket and a lot of their players play around the world in leagues. It will be as competitive as we play with other oppositions. We have to be at our best. That is how T20 cricket goes. If we lose our focus, there is a chance we do not end up on the right side,” he added.
Squads
Ireland: Paul Stirling (c), Mark Adair, Ross Adair, Andrew Balbirnie, Curtis Campher, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Graham Hume, Josh Little, Barry McCarthy, Neil Rock, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Ben White and Craig Young
India: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj.
Reserves: Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan.
- Rohit Sharma
