India captain Rohit Sharma reflected on his growth as a leader, noting that the closely contested series against England has played a significant role in his evolution.
Ahead of the fifth and final Test against England, starting in Dharamshala on March 7, Rohit reflected on his leadership style and addressed any areas for improvement.
Notably, England had won the first Test of the ongoing five-match Test series, but Team India bounced back strongly even without some of its key players, securing an unassailable 3-1 lead as they head into the final encounter in Dharamsala, starting on Thursday.
Since assuming the Test captaincy from Virat Kohli in 2022, Rohit has maintained an impressive unbeaten record in five series, excluding India's defeat in the World Test Championship final last year.
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Rohit Sharma told reporters: “Since I became captain, I haven't played with a full team. It's no excuse... work with what you have, keep a good atmosphere, and play with freedom.”
The Indian skipper continued, “Basically, it has been a series of comebacks. So, throughout the series, you must have seen that we have absorbed pressure and put it back on the opposition. It was a great series for me to learn as a captain and there were a lot of different challenges that came across our way.
As a captain, I got to learn a lot about how to utilize the players and obviously, when the pressure is put back on you, how to respond to certain situations of the game and things like that. I think it was a great series to be part of. I am glad that I was captaining this series, it made me understand where I have lacked as a captain and what are the things I need to do differently.”
Meanwhile, England captain Ben Stokes agreed that India had outclassed England during moments in the ongoing Test series when the game was in the balance.
Stokes told reporters, “India have been better than us in those moments on more than one occasion. It's skill versus skill and in the moments that have mattered, since the first game, India has been better.”
On being asked about being outsmarted by Rohit in the Test series, Stokes said: “I will let you decide.”
On the other hand, Rohit also lauded the senior off-spinner R Ashwin, who will play his 100th Test for India in the final Test in Dharamshala.
The Indian skipper called Ashwin the "match-winner", who left the third match midway to be with his ailing mother and returned a day later.
He signed off by saying, “The biggest thing is that he is a big team player and we saw that in the Rajkot Test when it was a difficult situation for him but he called and said 'I want to come back and do something for the team'. When you have players like this then your head is held high.”
(With AFP Inputs)
