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The Rohit Sharma-led Team India finally got a much-needed practice session ahead of the ninth edition of the T20 World Cup, set to be played in the USA and the Caribbean islands this month. However, the month-long tournament, which will be played for the first time in a 20-team affair, saw the Men in Blue take the field on June 1 in their scheduled warm-up match against Bangladesh.
The warm-up match gave a lot of hint around India’s probable line-up going into the tournament, but the major talking point was who will open the inning with Rohit Sharma. With Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli, both in the main squad for the marquee tournament, Rohit opened with Sanju Samson in the warm-up match with Virat unavailable.
A lot of eyebrows were raised in this regard, hinting that it could be the Rohit-Virat combo taking the guards in the middle for Team India in the T20 World Cup 2024. This further comes into picture seeing Yashasvi Jaiswal despite being in the side, did not get the taste of the batting conditions during the warm-up match. Rohit when asked about the same, however did not give a direct reply but at wide spoke of the line-up going forward into the tournament.
“Quite happy with how things went. Pretty much got what we wanted from the game. Like I said at the toss, it was important to get used to the conditions. New venue, new ground, drop-in pitch - important to get used to it and we managed pretty well,” Rohit said after India 60-run win on Saturday.
When asked on Rishabh Pant batting at No. 3, Rohit replied, “Just to give him an opportunity. We have not really nailed down what the batting unit will look like. Even the bowlers did pretty well. All in happy, happy with how things went.”
The Men in Blue, who are placed in Group A, will being their campaign at the marquee event on June 5 when they take on Ireland at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York. They will then play Pakistan in the much-awaited clash on June 9.
