IPL 2017: Rohit Sharma gets evasive when asked about dropping Harbhajan Singh

As the sun went behind the horizon of the Arabian Sea in front of the luxury hotel in South Mumbai, the flash lights from the cameras made the room brighter. The smiles on the faces of victorious Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma, flanked by his highest run-getter this IPL, wicketkeeper-batsman Parthiv Patel, and his bowling coach, the soft-spoken New Zealander Shane Bond could not have been any bigger. They proudly held the three IPL trophies that they won in the last five years, each coming in alternate years, 2013, 2015 and 2017.

All three were at ease, not showing any discomfort from the celebration party in Hyderabad that went into the early hours of Monday, nor did they show any jet lag, having landed in the city post 4pm and heading straight to the waiting media.

The only captain with three IPL titles, Sharma was in his casuals with plain baseball cap replacing his Mumbai Indians cap that adorned his head about 22 hours ago in Hyderabad. Patel was looking more intelligent in his spectacles while Bond was soft-spoken, a complete contrast from the bowler who was fast and furious in his playing days for New Zealand.

As the sun set, it also marked the end of the 10th edition of IPL while also marked the beginning of another competition, the impending one being the Champions Trophy for which Sharma is part of the defending champions Indian team led by Virat Kohli.

Sharma makes his return to the Indian ODI team as an opener. But, he played all IPL season for MI in the middle-order. Should he not have opened to get into the groove for the bigger occasion?

“I said at the start of the tournament that IPL is a different tournament and format. When you play for India, it’s a different format. I don’t see why people compare IPL and international cricket. My requirement here (MI) was in the middle order, and that’s what we did. We realised at the start of the tournament that it’s better for me to bat down the order to get that balance right. I go there (to play for India), it’s a different thing. I don’t see that we need to make any comparisons when it comes to the IPL and international cricket,” Sharma was frank.

Also, he did not see any fuss in changing from T20 mode to the 50-over format. “For the last 10 years, we are doing the same thing. We play the IPL, then we play 50-overs format or the Test format, so I don’t think at this point it is difficult for anyone to adjust.”

Sharma was also in the mood to joke around, when a scribe asked each of the three on stage a question each at one go. By the time it came to Sharma to answer, he said: “I forgot what your question was” before going with the flow of thoughts when reminded what the question for him was.

Patel and Bond, though, did not have to be reminded as they were asked only a handful of questions. Undoubtedly, Sharma hogged the limelight. After all, he is the first captain to lift the IPL trophy thrice. The hotly-contested Maharashtra Derby that the final was, it was labelled as the vada pav vs misal pav match. Sharma, though, was not aware of it. 

“Whenever there is a match between Mumbai and Pune, the people are always excited in this state, because both teams are from Maharashtra. We didn’t have a good time against Pune, having lost to them three times before the final. But we didn’t go into the final thinking we have to prove something. So we just tried to play our game and just focus on our team and not on other things. I come to know about vada pav vs misal pav from you,” Sharma said, evoking laughter from his fellow Mumbai Indians mates.

The celebration continued well into the night with party hosted by the team owners at their house before the overseas players took their international flights to their respective destinations.

Rohit Sharma also spoke on other subjects:

On dropping Harbhajan Singh...
“We’ve mentioned this previously. It was a tactical change, nothing related to performance and things like that. I don’t know why you’re asking this again.”

On which of the three IPL titles was sweeter...
“All three are special. But I think the last game (vs Rising Pune Supergiant) was brilliant to be a part of. It was the best T20 game I’ve been a part of. I can’t single out any one particular edition because all the three editions we won were really special and it took us a lot of hard work to win. So I want to cherish all three of them.”

On what he liked about new MI head coach Mahela Jayardene...
“His calmness. Certainly, he was very calm (throughout the season). But, not after Sunday’s batting performance (laughs). But throughout the season, he has been someone who has been able to settle down all the players and made sure that he kept every player under check because that’s how he has played his cricket, always calm and composed. That is something that has reflected on us as well, as a unit. The good thing about him was whenever we won, the energy level was at the medium level. Whenever we lost, it was still there. It never changed. When your attitude does not change too much, when it is right there in the middle, you can focus a lot more.”

On whether he is satisfied with his form going into Champions Trophy…
“Very happy.”

On the challenges of leading a star-studded team like MI…
“That’s the challenge that comes with the IPL. You’ll see every now and then you’ll have a new set of players and support staff coming in. You’ll have to face that challenge. Get to know them really well. Gladly for us, we’ve had the same staff as last year except for a few changes. It’s the same for them as well. They get to know us when they come in here, they try and understand each one of us. It goes both ways. So it’s a challenge, but we’ve so far enjoyed each other’s company, and that’s what makes a team successful. You have to have that strong bond going forward.”

On how different has it been working with a new head coach…
“It’s been different. Obviously, Ricky Ponting was a different individual and Mahela (Jayawardene) is a different individual but having said, that both of them come with vast experience and they have immense knowledge about the game. All I wanted to do was to understand they have dealt with those kinds of situations when they were playing and that is what helped me. They both were captains of their respective captains as well. So, being around them, I got to learn a lot of things which helped me on the field as well. This is where IPL is so good. You got to meet and get to be with so many international players and different players, it makes you a better individual as well.”
 
On whether franchises should be allowed to retain players next year…
“I don’t know about the others but I would love to play for my home team. I have played all my cricket here, I lived all my life here, I would love to be here. We don’t know what the rules and regulations will be, we will have to wait and watch. We would be happy to retain the whole squad if possible but we will have to wait and see what happens.”

On how he has grown since taking over Mumbai Indians captaincy…
“It has helped me a lot, not just for in my game but also as a human being. I have understood the responsibility, when you are thrown into that responsibility you mature as a person. That is something which I have been learning, and growing as a human being. Captaincy is something which I have enjoyed for the past four years with Mumbai. Again, if you win the trophy everything looks good, but last year we had a tough time not qualifying for the play-offs. But we knew the set of individuals we had, we backed them to do the job this year and they certainly went out and delivered. This has been the hallmark of this team, whenever we have played, we have never looked back. We have always moved forward. Whether we won a game or lost the game, the attitude was very similar, it never changed. These are the things as a captain it was heartening for me. As a captain I would love to inspire and that is something I have always wanted to do, inspire the team as much as I can. I am very happy with the way things are with MI right now, looking forward to a few more years.”

On switching from T20 mode to 50-overs mode?
“For the last 10 years, we are doing the same thing. We play the IPL, then we play 50-overs format or the Test format, so I don’t think at this point it is difficult for anyone to adjust. It is just that in your mind you have to keep reminding yourself that you need to change your mentality in terms of the format you are going to play. It has been happening for so many years now. We see the T20 format happening and then you have to go and play Test cricket, and then the 50-overs format. I don’t think in this day and age it is a worry for any cricket.”

On the MI vs RPS rivalry…
“Whenever there is a match between Mumbai and Pune, the people are always excited in this state, because both teams are from Maharashtra. When we batted in the final, we managed just 129, we didn’t do well with the bat because we were expecting to post around 140-150 because the wicket was not that easy. We knew that it would not be easy for them on that wicket. We spoke in the dressing room that we have to go in the middle and play our game, and that our bowlers have to continue the good work and the fielders have to all put in a good effort. Whenever Mumbai and Pune play against each other, there is a lot of excitement in Maharashtra.”
 
On how special the latest IPL win was…
“No one has won the IPL thrice yet, so this is a big achievement for me as a player and for the team as well because again no team has won it three times. We have to take this confidence forward in the future and continue playing the same way as we have been doing.”
 
On how straight forward was the final 11 selection…
It was a straight forward selection. That was one of our dominant performances against that particular team (KKR). I certainly did not see any reason to change the team. Everyone had an impact in the game. It was a straight-forward decision to play the best 11. I know there are a lot of guys who missed out throughout the season. We all know it is only 11 players who can go and take the field. There are a lot of younger guys, quite talented, who had a very good domestic season in India, they missed. Am sure their attitude has been great and am sure they will come back well next year.
 
On Krunal Pandya…
“You have seen throughout the season, the two brothers (Hardik and Krunal) are very expressive players. They like to express themselves on the field. That is something that brings the performance out of them, I guess. It works for them. They continue to do that. Krunal understands his game very well. Whenever we ask him to bat at 4, 5, 6, 7, he has batted at various positions, he has never looked out of the comfort zone. He has always adapted to the situation. When we wanted him to finish off the games, he has finished games. When we wanted him to go and take the pressure and rotate strike, he did that as well. It goes to show that he has a lot of maturity. He has got a bright future. He is a brilliant bowler, very sharp, thinks about his bowling a lot. Great prospect for Indian cricket.”

On Jasprit Bumrah…
I’d prefer not to say that he is the world’s best T20 bowler because, right now, he is doing a great job. I would like him to continue to do well. All those things when he sees will only add pressure on him. I don’t want to say anything. He knows what his capabilities are. He has shown it throughout the tournament when he came to bowl the Super Over to probably the best T20 batters in Aaron Finch and Brendon McCullum, defending 11 runs. He has got all the abilities to be No. 1 bowler in the world, for sure.