Former India batting coach Vikram Rathour lauded captain Rohit Sharma for being tactically very sound and for being a player’s captain. Under his leadership, India qualified for the finals of the World Test Championship Final 2023 and the ODI World Cup later, but the Men in Blue failed to clinch either of those. However, in the T20 World Cup 2024, they finally got the job done, helping India win their first ICC trophy in 11 years.
Rathour noted that the Nagpur-born cricketer may forget whether he has decided to bat or bowl, but is not someone who would forget the tactics. The 55-year-old highlighted that Rohit spends a lot of time chatting with the coaches and players to build the right strategy, and that he always sits with the cricketers to understand them and what they are thinking.
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“He might forget whether he has decided to bat or bowl at the toss, or his phone and iPad in the team bus but he never forgets his game plan. He is very good at it and is a very shrewd tactician,” Rathour said in ‘Find a Way with Taruwar Kohli’ podcast.
“He is a player’s captain. He is invested with the players. I have never seen a captain, who is so invested in team meetings and strategies. He spends a lot of time on the team’s strategy. He is part of the bowlers’ meeting, batters’ meeting. He wants to sit with the bowlers and batters to try and understand what they are thinking. He invests a lot of time with the players,” he added.
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Rathour also explained how Rohit didn’t hesitate to finish Jasprit Bumrah’s overs early in the T20 World Cup final. With 30 runs needed in the last five overs, the game was almost out of India’s hands. That’s when Rohit introduced Bumrah, who took control of the situation and changed the complexion of the game. Keeping that in mind, Rathour stated that his tactical decisions are spot-on and it even surprises the coaches at times.
“He is tactically very good as a captain. In the T20 World Cup final, he finished Bumrah’s over early. A lot of people must have questioned that decision but that decision put us in the situation, where 16 was needed in the last over. His tactical decisions on the field are spot on. Sitting outside, it surprises you as a coach as well. We from outside sometimes think what he is doing, but then you realise what he has done after a while,” he added.
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