For a young captain, Suresh Raina might not have the team he would have wanted
For a young captain, Suresh Raina might not have the team he would have wanted. But as the Indian contingent left for Zimbabwe to play a tri-series that also involves Sri Lanka followed by two T20 games against the hosts, the 24-year-old opted to look at the positives. Even if that meant risking that his comments are taken out of context and seen as a criticism of senior players.
The Indian selectors decided to rest all its senior players for the tour and the oldest player in the side is 27-year-old Yusuf Pathan.
"It is a young side and they are eager to prove themselves. They are also extremely fit and since they will be getting a lot of chances to show their talent, they will be committed and determined. Also, they have the ability to make a total of 240 look like 280 because of their fielding," Raina said before leaving for the African nation.
"It's not often that the senior players opt for a rest and hence this is a great opportunity for everyone to try and cement their place in the side. If they can do well in this series, they will surely be in line to get more chances in future tournaments," the elegant left-handed batsman said.
Raina, leading a side that has done well on the domestic circuit or in the Indian Premier League, was also looking forward to captaincy. And having received advice from several seniors, he appeared confident of doing the job well.
"I have played under Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and MS Dhoni and learnt a lot from them. Also, Dhoni told me to just keep it simple and I will be looking to do that. I also spoke to coach Gary Kirsten before we left from the West Indies," Raina said adding that Sachin Tendulkar had also given him a few tips.
"He keeps saying that it is important to be humble and I always try to follow that. Also, I believe that hard work pays off and there is no substitute to hard work. So, I will be looking to do what I have been doing and hopefully things will work out well for us," he added.
