Rohit Sharma ahead of Asia Cup 2022 clash against Pakistan

Speaking ahead of the game, the Indian skipper asserted that the mood in the Indian camp is buzzing. He stated, “Fresh tournament and new start. Not thinking about what happened in the past. Challenging to play Pakistan. Taking one game at a time!.”

On the playing XI, he added, “We have not decided on playing XI. We will watch the match tonight and decide. Match will be played on the same wicket.” Speaking of the match, Afghanistan thumped Sri Lanka by eight wickets in the tournament opener. Bowling first, they held Sri Lanka to 105 and chased the target with utmost ease.

Coming back to India, they will be without key pacers like Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel for the Asia Cup. Both the bowlers have been ruled out due to injury. Expressing confidence that the younger pacers would rise to the occasion, he added, “All the young bowlers stand a chance to get a nod in. We are open to give responsibility and see how they respond. We will go in with best possible XI. Dinesh off late has done well in recent times.

“We have decided to try out a few things. We might not be successful. As far as combinations is concerned you will get to know tomorrow (on Sunday). We have decided in the group to try a few things irrespective of result,” he continued.

The 35-year-old also opened up about India’s World Cup loss to Pakistan last year, stating that they have tried to learn from their mistakes. He said, “We have spoken about the loss to Pakistan last time. No point. We tried to correct the mistakes. It is a fresh start. October was long time back.”

India and Pakistan are in Group A of the Asia Cup 2022. They have been joined by Hong Kong, who won the qualifying round.

–By A Cricket Correspondent