India captain Rohit Sharma on Wednesday said his recovery from COVID-19 has been good and he is looking forward to playing the first T20I against England in Southampton.
Indian opener Rohit Sharma joined Team India ahead of their first T20 match against England in Southampton on Thursday. The batsmen were seen sweating in the nets.
“The recovery has been good. It has been eight to nine days since I tested positive for COVID-19. Currently, I am feeling well. I started training three days ago. I wanted to participate in the match because My body feels better, and there are no symptoms. I tested negative two to three times. I am looking forward to the game.” Rohit said in the press conference.
On whether this series is a preparation for this year’s T20 World Cup, he said, We have our eyes on the World T20. I would not say that (this series) is preparation. Every match for India is important for us. ,
Rohit said England is going to be a challenging side to face but the team is prepared as they have played two T20Is in Ireland followed by two warm-up matches against Derbyshire and Northamptonshire before the England T20I series .
Asked whether the loss in the final Test at Edgbaston affects the players here, the captain said, “You want that hunger to last all the time. I definitely see that hunger in that group. It’s disappointing not to come out on the winning side.”
Gearing up for T20Is #teamindia , #Engwind pic.twitter.com/YHqaaQ0G0R—BCCI (@BCCI) 6 July 2022
A 269-run stand between Root and Bairstow helped England script history, completing their highest successful run chase in the longest format of the game with a seven-wicket win over India at Edgbaston in Birmingham.
England were successful in chasing the target of 378 runs set by India. The win comes after England were bowled out for 284 in their first innings, trailing by 132 runs after India scored 416 in their first innings. India were bundled out for 245 in the third innings of the match and set England a target of 378 runs to win.
,@ImRo45 – Out and in the trap!
Some are gearing up for white-ball cricket. #teamindia , #Engwind pic.twitter.com/nogTRPhr9a
—BCCI (@BCCI) 4 July 2022
He admitted to getting youngsters in the team on the basis of good performance in his state or IPL and said that he deserves a chance to represent the national side.
The captain said that Umran Malik is still in the scheme of things for the team despite not doing well in the T20Is against Ireland.
“We are trying to make him understand what the team needs from him. We will have to see what he has to offer us. He is an exciting prospect, we have seen it in the IPL. It is about giving him a role. , We want him to bowl with the new ball or in the middle overs because when you play for a franchise, you have a different role. Guys there is a certain skill set here, it’s about understanding it, Fitting these people into the team and giving them role clarity,” He added.
J&K pacer Umran Malik didn’t have the best start of his international cricket career after dreaming of IPL 2022 with Sunrisers Hyderabad, in which he took 22 wickets. He conceded 14 runs in his only over in the first T20I against Ireland and took a wicket for 42 runs in four overs with an economy rate of over 10.
Indian team for first T20 match: Rohit Sharma (capt), Ishan Kishan, Rituraj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Hardik Pandya, Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel , Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik
Indian squad for 2nd and 3rd T20 Internationals: Rohit Sharma (capt), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Shreyas Iyer, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah , Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel, Umran Malik.