File photo of Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma© AFP
Star batter Rohit Sharma on Wednesday said former head coach Rahul Dravid, chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar and BCCI secretary Jay Shah backed him to the hilt in his effort to extract the best from players without worrying about results, eventuating in India's T20 World Cup triumph under him. Under Rohit's leadership, India triumphed in the ICC showpiece in June beating South Africa in the final. It was their second T20 world title after 2007, and Rohit also brought curtains on his career in the shortest format with that victory at Barbados.
“It was my dream to transform this team and not worry too much about the stats, the results, to make sure that we create that environment where people can go out there and play freely without thinking too much,” Rohit said after being named the men's international cricketer of the year at the CEAT Cricket Rating Awards here.
“That is what was required. I got a lot of help from my three pillars, who are actually Mr Jay Shah, Mr Rahul Dravid (and the) chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar,” he said.
“That was very critical for me to do what I did and obviously not to forget the players, who came in at different points in time and helped the team to achieve what we achieved,” he said.
Rohit said the feeling of winning the World Cup that ended India's decade-long drought in global tournaments could not be described in words.
“(It was) a feeling that cannot come everyday. It was something that we were really hoping for. When we won the World Cup, it was important for all of us to enjoy the moment which we did pretty well and thanks to our nation as well for celebrating with us,” he said.
“As much as it meant for us, it meant a whole lot to the entire nation as well. It felt really great to bring it (trophy) back home here and celebrate with everyone here.” “(It is a) fantastic feeling that can never be put out in words. I don't think it's a feeling that can be expressed. It won't do justice to our effect when all that happened,” Rohit said.
The Mumbaikar said he is not someone who fusses with the specific weight of a bat but prefers to go with the feel of it.
“The guys who spend time with me in the changing room where I put my stickers and I put the bat tape and all that, will tell you (that) whichever bat I pick up, I go and play with that,” he said.
“The balance of the bat for me is very important. I have seen a lot of guys who are pretty much into 'how many grains the bat has', 'what is the weight of the bat' and 'how does it look from outside', but I am not that kind of a person. I will pick up the bat and if I feel this is the right bat, I will go and play with that,” he said.
Despite guiding Mumbai Indians to five IPL title as captain, Rohit's hunger to add more trophies to his cabinet remains insatiable.
“There is a reason I won five IPL trophies. I'm not going to stop, because once you get the taste of winning games, winning Cups, you don't want to stop and we'll keep pushing as a team. We'll keep striving for better things in the future,” he said.
As an extension, he wanted more success with India too as their ODI and Test leader.
“We've got a couple of solid tours coming up, very challenging ones as well. For us, it never stops. Once you achieve something you always look forward to achieving more.
“That is what I will be doing. I'm pretty sure my teammates will be thinking on the same line. What I've seen in the last two years in Indian cricket, there's some real excitement, some real good cricket is being played,” he added.