Make sure everyone is okay to bat anywhere: Rohit

To bring in more flexibility in the squad ahead of the Men’s ODI World Cup, India skipper Rohit Sharma said he wants to ensure players in the side are fine with batting anywhere if the need arises, especially in the middle-order, though they have been given specific roles in the line-up. “Ajit (Agarkar, chief selector) is new to the picture and he didn’t know what was happening before that. I have tried to keep him updated as much as possible. But one thing I want in this team is to make sure everyone is okay to bat anywhere. That’s one thing we need to keep in mind. Now, cricket is moving in a different direction.” “You need flexibility, and guys who can step up at any position. No one should say, ‘I’m good at this position or I’m good at that position’. You want guys to be able to bat anywhere, that’s the message conveyed to every individual. Not now, but over the last two, three, or four years,” said Rohit in a press conference on the occasion of the announcement of India’s squad for the upcoming Asia Cup. For the Asia Cup, India can finally look to field a settled batting order with the return of K.L Rahul and Shreyas Iyer, though the former has a niggle issue to address. With Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma in the mix, Rohit added that the process of flexibility in the team wasn’t decided in a day. “I know it’s tough for you guys on the outside to understand why a guy who bats at six is batting at four, but the message has been given and it hasn’t happened overnight. This is an international sport, not club cricket, that you’re talking about. It’s not like we go to sleep giving a position for a certain player and then change it the next morning.” “We say, ‘This is what we want’. You don’t want to be handicapped or stuck with one player batting in one position. Having said that, you want to get the best out of players in certain positions. All seven-eight numbers are open to anyone, that’s the message we have sent out for so many years now.