Mumbai: Indian batsman Rohit Sharma made it clear that the men in blue are eager to regain the No 1 Test ranking after losing it to Pakistan recently. India, who won the recent away Test series in West Indies 2-0, are set to play 13 Tests at home starting with New Zealand who are slated to arrive later this month.
“It is going to be a long season for us, but as a team we are moving in a good direction. We had recently come from West Indies having a successful tour there, so as a team we will like to continue where we left in the West Indies. And our goal is very simple to be No 1 side in the world. We were No 1 for a week but unfortunately we could not get a game in the last Test match (against West Indies) we slipped to No 2,” Rohit said after he was felicitated at Sports Journalists Association of Mumbai golden jubilee awards ceremony here on Saturday along with his team-mate Ajinkya Rahane.
Rohit who has been a revelation in limited overs cricket, but has not been able to keep his Test spot on consistent basis said his team will look at one series at a time. “We have to consider one series at a time. New Zealand will be here very soon and we have to focus on that. I am sure if we do the process right, we will get the results we want,” he added.
Rahane, who has sizzled in all the formats especially in Tests, reiterated Rohit’s point. “It is important to play one series at a time and that is New Zealand right now and we are excited about this season because we are going to play 13 Test matches here, it’s going to be a long season. I am sure everybody in our team is excited and looking forward to this season. Simple things will take us forward,” Rahane said.
Former Indian pacer Zaheer Khan, who was the chief guest on the occasion, felt the long home season can make or break careers. “It is exciting to see that so many Test matches are scheduled this year. This kind of season, can change the whole graph of a cricketer’s life, career graph, for better or worse actually. So I hope everyone prepares that way and it is exciting time,” said Zaheer.
“If you are in a positive frame of mind, your rhythm is good if you are a bowler or a batter, make the most of it. Because this kind of season doesn’t come along often,” he added.
Zaheer who was inducted as an Honorary Life Member of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) on Friday said New Zealand series is most important for India.
“As far as matches are concerned and series are planned, I think the most important series is the series which they are starting with. India-New Zealand series is going to be very crucial and it is interesting to see what kind of wickets they play on, because according to me its going to be an even battle and when you are in a season like this it is very important to start on a good note and set
the tone for the season,” he said. Lalita Babar who made it to the finals in 3000m steeple chase at Rio Olympics recently was also felicitated on the occasion along with other sportspersons.
