India's skipper, Rohit Sharma, candidly admitted that his batting performance in the ongoing IPL did not meet the expected standards. Rather than overthinking his form, Sharma focused on maintaining a positive mindset and addressing his weaknesses through consistent practice.
The five-time IPL-winning captain faced a challenging second half of the season, struggling to score more than 20 runs in six consecutive matches for Mumbai Indians. "As a batter, I know I didn't live up to the standard. But, after playing for all these years, I know that if I overthink, I won't play well," Rohit stated on JioCinema Match Centre Live. He did, however, return to form with a 38-ball 68 in their final match against Lucknow Super Giants, though MI ended the season at the bottom of the table.
"All I try is to stay in a good mindset, in the right zone, keep practicing, and improve on all the flaws in my game. That's all I kept doing," Sharma explained. He acknowledged the team's disappointing season, attributing it to a series of mistakes. "Our season didn't go according to plan. We blame ourselves for this because we made too many mistakes during the season. We lost many games that we should have won, but that's the nature of the IPL. You get a few chances and when those chances come, you must grab them."
'70% of T20 World Cup Players Had Clarity'
Sharma also shed light on the Indian team's preparation for the upcoming T20 World Cup, noting that the squad was largely determined before the IPL began. "We thought a lot about the team we ultimately selected for the World Cup. The spinners, seamers, batters, and keepers, we knew before the IPL who we would take to the World Cup."
Sharma emphasized that the IPL performances, which can be inconsistent, were not the primary focus for World Cup selection. "The IPL performances for everyone can be up and down, so we didn't focus too much on that. We needed to see the performances of certain players, but it was important for us to give everyone the clarity they needed."
"Everyone going into the IPL needed clarity of whether they would participate in the team and what their role would be so they could practice and play accordingly. All of these indicators we had shared with 70% of the team before the IPL," he added.
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(With PTI inputs)