Before the start of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, many experts have tipped hosts India to lift the coveted trophy. As of now, the Rohit Sharma-led side has lived up to the expectations as well.
The Indian team has had a bright start to its World Cup campaign. The Men in Blue have won all their three matches so far against Australia, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The three victories have propelled India to the top of the 10-team points table and dismissed concerns over how the home team would deal with the extra pressure that comes with playing in front of passionate fans.
Team India’s display has left a lasting impression on Australian legend Ricky Ponting, who feels Rohit is the ideal captain for India as they chase the World Cup trophy on home soil.
"He's very laid back, Rohit. Very laid back with everything he does. You can even see that by the way that he plays. He's a pretty laconic sort of batsman as well, and that's the way he is both on and off the field,” Ponting told the ICC.
"We can't sit back and say that the pressure won't get to them at some stage, or it won't affect them, because it will, just with the enormity of the tournament. But he'll take it and cope with it as well as probably anyone,” he added.
Rohit Sharma was appointed India’s all-format captain last year after Virat Kohli relinquished the T20I and Test captaincy and was sacked as ODI skipper.
Under his leadership, India played the semi-final of the T20 World Cup 2022, final of the World Test Championship (WTC) this year and recently clinched the Asia Cup title.
"Someone like Virat, who is a bit more heart-on-the-sleeve, and probably listens to the fans and plays up with the fans a little bit more, someone with his personality would probably find it a bit harder,” Ponting said.
"But I think Rohit will be fine with it. He's a terrific bloke and has been a great player for a long time, and he's done a great job as leader of India,” he remarked.
It's been a decade since Team India last won an ICC tournament. After MS Dhoni led the side to a Champions Trophy triumph in 2013, India have lost as many as four ICC event finals and bowed out in the semi-finals on numerous occasions.
However, Ponting believes India have a great chance to end the global title drought this time around.
"I said from the start that I think they're going to be the team to beat. They've got a very talented team,” Ponting said.
"They've got all bases covered with their fast bowling, their spin and their top-order, middle-order batting.
"They're going to be extremely hard to beat. But we'll see how they hold up under extreme pressure as well.”
India’s next World Cup match is scheduled against Bangladesh in Pune on Thursday (October 19).
