Asia Cup 2018: Middle order on Rohit’s mind before Hong Kong match

Ahead of India’s Asia Cup match against Hong Kong, stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma said that he is looking forward to identifying the batsmen at the number four and six slots in the batting line-up.

India’s middle-order woes came to the forefront during their 1-2 ODI series loss to England and Rohit added that the performances of the trio-Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandey and Ambati Rayudu would be crucial to India’s chances in the tournament.

“Lot of spots are up for grabs like Nos 3, 4 and 6. All these guys (Kedar, Manish, Rayudu) are eyeing for those slots. We want to give chances to as many guys for this particular series. In this tournament, we need to seal the batting slot Nos 4 and 6,” said Rohit as quoted by The Indian Express, before adding, ”They are both important members of this team. Rayudu was originally part of England series and similarly Kedar before his injury. It was unfortunate that they couldn’t play for some time and I am very happy that both are back in the team. I expect them to win matches for India.”

While commenting on India’s options with the ball, he said, “I haven’t thought about it right now. We want to see how each individual reacts to different situations. At the same time, we want to give chance to as many guys as possible but also give more opportunities to those who are consistent. We would see how individuals respond to conditions and take decisions accordingly.”

Admitting that it would be tough for both the teams to play in the searing heat, Rohit said that India’s approach to the match remains the same even with Hong Kong being minnows.

“We are treating every opposition equally. We are looking at what we want to do as a team and if we do that a lot of worries and issues will take care of itself. Yes, the conditions are not going to be that easy. But it’s game time now and we have to focus on the match,” he said.