Rohit Sharma is one of the only two players in international cricket to feature in all editions of the ICC T20 World Cup. Though he happens to be a title winner, laying his hands on the silverware as the captain of the Indian cricket team is still an unfulfilled dream.
The quest begins on Wednesday when his team takes on Ireland in New York. Ahead of India’s campaign opener, Rohit spoke about his journey since making his international debut in the inaugural edition of the tournament.
Rohit made a sizzling start to his career, smashing a fifty on debut to bag the Player of the Match award against South Africa. However, the 37-year-old stated that the first thing that came to his mind from the tournament was the bowl-out against Pakistan in 2007.
“I think the first thing that comes to my mind is the bowl-out that we had against Pakistan,” Rohit said.
“I think that was the first ever bowl-out that happened, and for us to come out on top was even more exciting. You know, it has never happened before. No teams have done it in the World Cup. So it was quite exciting for us to have a crack at it and come out on top eventually. And I still remember that after our normal training, we used to train for bowl-outs, which was quite exciting. Everyone used to participate in that bowl-out.
“And we knew at some stage we have to play and win that game through bowl-out. And that’s exactly what happened when we played against Pakistan. And like I said, it was nice to come out on top,” he added.
Hoping to make an impact on future generation
Stressing that winning a World Cup is the “most prestigious” thing a player can do in his career, Rohit said that he hoped to make an impact on the future generation of cricketers.
“It’s always been the dream to win World Cups. Winning the World Cup is the most prestigious thing that you can ever do. And for me, nothing changes from all the World Cups that I have played. I always wanted to win and I will still keep driving towards that,” he added.
“As a player of the national team, our responsibility is to encourage the next generation to take up the sport and play the sport. So I think that is something that I want to leave behind, leave a mark on the next generation who are going to follow us, the way we play, the way we carry ourselves on the field.
“Those are the things that I’ll be really proud of if I can leave something behind on those lines. I think it’s mental, to keep myself calm and enjoy the sport, enjoy every bit of it.
“I think it’s important that you try and be in the moment, enjoy that present moment, and leave the rest up to the Almighty. Because I think it’s important that you keep doing what you’re supposed to do and be sincere in your work ethics, be true to the sport. And I think if I can do all of that, that’s perfect.”
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