Watch: Rohit Sharma's uber-cheeky reply to Pakistani journalist's ‘who’ll open with you' question
In the pre-match press conference on the eve of the India vs Pakistan clash when a Pakistani journalist asked Rohit Sharma about India's opening pair, the right-hander gave an uber-cheeky response. Here's how the conversation took place between the two on Saturday.
In India's last two T20I series against England and West Indies, Rohit Sharma had different opening partners. In England, it was Ishan Kishan for one match and Rishabh Pant for the other two. Against West Indies, it was Suryakumar Yadav for four matches while Rohit himself decided to rest from the last match. These experiments happened mainly because KL Rahul was injured but now with the vice-captain back in the mix for Asia Cup, there really shouldn't be any doubt on India's opening pair for the multi-nation tournament. India's captain Rohit Sharma, however, didn't spill the beans ahead of their tournament against Pakistan on Sunday.
Also Read | IND vs PAK Live Blog | Predicted XI | Streaming
In the pre-match press conference on the eve of the anticipated clash when a Pakistani journalist asked Rohit about India's opening pair, the right-hander gave an uber-cheeky response. Here's how the conversation took place between the two on Saturday.
Pakistani journalist: "Pichle kuch series mein India ne naye naye combinations try kie hai. Kabhi Pant aa rahe hai, kabhi Suryakumar Yadav aa rahe hai. Wo sirf isilie tha kyuki KL Rahul nahi the. AB jab wo wapas aa gaye hai toh apne jagah pe wahi ayenge ya kal aapke saath koi naya opening partner dekhne ko milega? (In the last few series we saw India experiment a lot with their opening pair. Sometimes it was Pant, sometimes it was Suryakumar Yadav but it was mainly because of KL Rahul's absence but now that he is back will he get his spot back straightaway?"
Rohit Sharma: "Aap dekh lijie kal toss k baad kaun ayega. Thoda toh secret humko bhi rakhne do yaar. (You will get to see after toss tomorrow. Let us keep some secrets at least). We have decided to try new things. Some will work, some won't. There's no harm in trying. You won't get answers if you don't try. Whenever we get opportunities, we try new things. As far as the combination is concerned, you'll get to know tomorrow only but we, as a team, have decided to keep trying new things. We've got a lot of answers in the last six-eight months and that has happened only because we have tried new things."
India lost to Pakistan by 10 wickets the last time these two met at the same venue last year in T20 World Cup. When asked about the rivalry between the two sides, Rohit said they just want to focus on their game.
"When we are on the ground, fans want to see the match as well as meet players. As far as the rivalry is concerned when two quality teams play then we see a good match. As players, we just want to focus on our game. Our batting coach decides who will bat in the nets. Virat Kohli has looked in good touch. We have prepared hard for it," he added.
"The mood in the camp is buzzing. What has happened is past. Take one game at a time. We will be focusing on that. We want to focus on the game. We have not decided on playing eleven. We will look at the pitch and decide accordingly," he said.