New India T20I captain Rohit Sharma and new Indian team head coach Rahul Dravid attended their first press conference ahead of the first India-New Zealand T20I match to be played in Jaipur. The Kiwis are in the country for three T20Is starting November 17 and two Tests, starting November 25.
During the online press conference, Rohit and Dravid recalled the first time the two met in 2007, just before the Mumbai batter made his India ODI debut in Ireland.
Since then Rohit has gone on to become a legend in white-ball cricket, while Dravid, after achieving greatness as a player, has been instrumental in creating the national team's feeder line as a coach.
"We were talking about it yesterday on the bus. I guess time flies, doesn't it? I actually remember Rohit even before the Ireland series when we were playing a challenger in Madras.
"We all knew that Rohit was going to be special. We could just see that he was a very very special talent that I wouldn't so many years later be working with him that I never thought about or envisaged.
But honestly, the way he has grown as a leader as a person over these last 14 years now. What he's achieved both as an India player and as a leader for the Mumbai Indians has been phenomenal. Having to carry the legacy of obviously Mumbai cricket and Indian cricket is not an easy one and he's done it with a lot of grace and class," said Dravid.
Rohit revealed that he was on the moon sharing the dressing room with legends like Dravid, Tendulkar, and others on his first tour with the Indian team in 2007.
"It was way back in 2007 when I was selected, but the first time I had the opportunity to interact with him was in Bangalore at a camp. It was a very brief chat and I was actually kind of very nervous and I never used to talk so much even with people my age group so leave alone these guys at that point.
So I was just quietly doing my things and getting a move on with my game. But yeah in Ireland the first time when he came and told me that you will be playing this game I was on the moon that, obviously felt like a dream to be part of the dressing room,” Rohit said.
"It's been a long way since then. I have cherished all the moments that I've spent playing for India and also for my franchisee, Mumbai Indians. And we look forward to many more," said Rohit.
(PTI inputs)
