BCCI cheers, fans jeer

A smiling Rohit Sharma sat down for the press conference on Thursday afternoon at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai After the usual instructions from the media incharge the floor was opened to questionsOne might have anticipated that the initial inquiry would center on the World Cup itself However this wasnt the case Instead Rohit Sharma found himself fielding a question he did not expect to be asked so soonldquoHi Rohit How does it feel to be a captain to a player then be captained by the same player only to be a captain again to the same playerrdquoRohit smiled and said ldquoNot everything goes your way See it is part of life Not everything will go your way It has been a great experience Before also I have not been captain and I have played under a lot of captains It is no different or new to merdquoAlso ReadRecord 262run chase in T20 history halfcentury to century off just 10 balls for Will JacksldquoWhatever is there and you go by it and then try and do what is required from you as a player I have only tried to do that in the last one month or sordquo he hastily remarkedPoor Rohit What else was he going to say That he wasnrsquot expecting to be removed from MI leadership so suddenly Of course not However his response to the question was somewhat playful yet calculated lacking the usual extensive and convoluted explanations he often engages himself in Nonetheless it proved sufficient to make headlinesAjit Agarkar the chief selector seated next to Rohit staunchly defended the inclusion of the underfire Pandyain Indias Twenty20 World Cup campaign Questions regarding his dip in form are circulating in the media and while he hasnrsquot been completely ineffective he is leaking runs more than usualAlthough Pandya took over the captaincy of the Mumbai Indians this IPL season from Rohit he has faced relentless jeering from spectators due to his inability to match the form of his esteemed predecessor The 30yearoldrsquos appointment as vicecaptain for the upcoming tournament cohosted by the United States and West Indies was particularly astonishingNothing discussed with regards to vicecaptaincyyou want all guys to be in good form Hes come after a longish layoff The hope is that he keeps building on that form Agarkar said We know what he brings how much balance he gives to the team I dont think theres a replacement for the things that he can do as a cricketer at the moment especially when it comes to the way he bowls It will give Rohit options to play different combinationsIf Pandya the bowler is at all the reason he made it to the squad there is every reason for an average Indian cricket fan to feel anxious Although he has scored 197 runs at a strike rate of 15038 with the willow this IPL his bowling has been worrisomeIn about ten games thus far the rightarm bowler has scalped six wickets at an average of 4216 and an economy rate of 11 Speaking about the lsquobalancersquo Agarkar believes Pandya will bring to the team the last time the Baroda allrounder stepped onto the field donning an India jersey was in October last year during the World Cup To play under alien conditions in the States his past deeds with the ball will be of minimal utility truth be told It is always the current form that matters But Agarkar harbours lofty expectations and it will remain that wayWe have another month and a little bit till we play our first game So we know that he is doing that and the hope is that he keeps building on that form His fitness for us is critical and so far he has gone okay in this IPL said the former India pacerDisclaimer The views expressed here are the authorrsquos personal views and do not represent the views of MidDay