Watch: Rohit Sharma's golden response when asked about comeback; 'Don't want to miss any games for country but...'

Rohit Sharma has joined the Indian contingent ahead of their first T20I game against England, which will take place in Southampton.

As India missed out on the golden chance to secure a first series win in England since 2007, the focus shifted to Rohit Sharma, who wasn't a part of the team's crushing loss at Edgbaston. Rohit was ruled out of the much-delayed fifth Test with Covid-19, with fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah leading the side in his first game as captain at any level of representative cricket.

India captain Rohit Sharma (Twitter)

A 269-run partnership between Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow helped England create history, with the side completing their highest successful run chase ever in the longest format of the game. India may have suffered a seven-wicket drubbing at the hands of new-look England, but Rohit said only "time will tell" if the loss hurts his side in the long run.

"It's obviously disappointing to not come out as victors. The Test series was for India to win. That said, time will tell whether that loss will have any impact in the T20I and ODI series against England," Rohit said on the eve of the first T20I at Southampton.

Rohit has joined the Indian contingent ahead of their first T20I game against England, which will take place in Southampton on Thursday. The batter was also seen sweating it out in nets. When asked about his return to the team, Rohit said he doesn't want to miss any game for the country. He also spoke on the uncontrollable which has had an impact on his international career.

“It's always good to be back playing for your country no doubt. You don't any games for your country but certain things are not in your control. It's beyond your control. Now that I'm back, I am pretty excited and looking forward. Speaking about my interaction with VVS Laxman, I wanted to understand what was happening with the team all this while,” said Rohit.

“This is the first day I joined the team. They have been travelling to Ireland and played a couple of practice games as well. I'm trying to understand what sort of mindset the boys are in. It was just about catching up on things which I wasn't part of.”

Rohit and head coach Rahul Dravid have been handed the tricky task of finding the perfect team combination as India gear up for this year's T20 World Cup. The Indian captain said the England series will be crucial in his team's run-up to the showpiece event in Australia.

"With one eye on the World Cup later this year, this is an important series for us. That said, every game for India is important right now and we want to get our job done in this series as well," Rohit said.

"The hunger is definitely there whenever we are representing India. So, it's not going to be any different this time too," he added.

"England will be a challenging side for us. I am sure these (boys) who have been here for a while, played a handful of games against Ireland and a few practice games as well, will be looking forward to this T20 series."