India is in a period of transformation and West Indies are in shock after they failed to qualify for the ODI World Cup 2023. The two great cricketing nations, looking to regain their best form, have looked to the upstarts among their ranks to lead the way.
Rohit Sharma’s Mumbai Indians played the whole IPL without pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, and the record-breaking victors even made it to the IPL playoffs despite a below-par pace attack. Rohit warned the Indian management about players injuring themselves after passing fitness tests at the National Cricket Academy (NCA). In major tournaments, India did not have the luxury of completely showcasing their star-studded squad.
The ones we have, we need to manage them: Rohit Sharma
At the T20 World Cup, Rohit and company were without Ravindra Jadeja and Jasprit Bumrah. In the final of the World Test Championship (WTC), the Indian Team were without Bumrah, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, and KL Rahul. Speaking to media on the eve of the first Test between India and the West Indies. The Indian skipper was questioned about leading the tourists in the Caribbean with an inexperienced bowling attack.
He said, “We’ve seen that the pacers have taken a lot of wickets here. But it is what it is. Players get injured and we have to rotate them, unfortunately. Humare paas fast bowlers ki line nahi lagi hui hai (We don’t have an abundance of pacers). In India, there are a lot of bowlers who are injured. The ones we have, we need to manage them. Which is why our experienced bowlers couldn’t come on this tour.”
21-year-old Yashasvi Jaiswal is preparing to open the batting for India on Test debut. India is also looking ahead, as Rohit and company prepare for the World Cup with a white-ball series against the West Indies in the Caribbean.
The experienced Indian opener warned that the visitors’ bench strength might be put to the test in their next white-ball duties. Following the two-match Test series, Team India will play three One Day Internationals (ODIs) and five Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) against the Caribbean Men.
