India's new white-ball skipper Rohit Sharma heaped praise on his predecessor Virat Kohli, saying that the latter led the team from the front for five years and he enjoyed "each and every moment" playing under him.
Last week, Rohit took over the reins from Kohli as the new ODI captain as the selectors didn’t want two different captains for the limited-over formats. His stint as full-time ODI captain will begin with the series against South Africa next month.
"Five years that he led the team, he led from the front every time, we stepped onto the park, and there was clear grit and determination to win every game, that was the message to the entire squad," Rohit told bcci.tv in an exclusive chat.
"We have had a great time playing under him (Kohli) and I have played a lot of cricket under him, I have enjoyed each and every moment, still continue to do that," he added, putting an end to all the rift speculations between the two.
According to Rohit, it is important to focus on the process rather than the end goal and that will be his message to the boys.
"There are lot of things that we need to do right before we think of end result. The last ICC trophy (Champions Trophy), we won was in 2013.
"..But I don't see anything wrong that we did after that Champions Trophy. We played well and performed as a team but just that we couldn't get that extra inch," he said.
"That can happen as international cricket is very demanding but that's the challenge as we are all professionals."
Rohit, however, feels that one needs to do a lot of things right to win a Championship.
"Lot of World Cups are coming and India will be eyeing to do well in lot of them. Our focus is on winning Championship but there is a process that we need to follow as a group.
"If you need to win the Championship, there are lot of other things that you first need to take care of, then focus on the end goal."
The focus will be on getting better as a player first and then collectively as a team.
"When challenges are there and how you come out of those tough challenges is very important and I think, in the past we have been put in those situations before, where we have been 10/3 or 15/2 or something like that, we failed to recover," he made it clear.
"Something that we need to keep in mind moving forward, its one of the areas. There are other areas we need to keep improving as a team and getting better as a team."
For Rohit, it is important that every player is aware of his role in the team and what is expected of him.
"I have got limited opportunities to lead Team India but whenever I have got an opportunity, I have tried to keep it simple, tried to keep one thing in common, clear communication to players," he said.
"I have tried making sure that they understand their roles, and that is what it is all about, understanding that role and going out there and performing that role.
"Because, for us, coach and captain, it is important that we have clear communication and that is what I want to do, making people understand why they have been picked in the team."
Rohit began his full-time white-ball captaincy journey with a 3-0 T20I series win over New Zealand last month. It was also Rahul Dravid’s maiden stint as a full-time India coach.
"Working with Rahul bhai, it was three-odd games but it was fantastic. We know how he has played his cricket, hard and tough. There has been a sense of relaxation as well, because it is important to keep the atmosphere light and cheerful," Rohit said.
(With PTI inputs)
