Multiple success
Since becoming the full-time India captain after Virat Kohli’s tenure at the helm ended, Rohit has led India to winning 2024 T20 World Cup and 2023 Asia Cup, apart from runners-up finishes at the 2023 World Test Championship and the ODI World Cup. “He [Rohit] might forget whether he has decided to bat or bowl at the toss, or his phone and iPad in the team bus, but he never forgets his game plan. He’s a shrewd tactician,” Rathour said in the podcast, Find a Way with Taruwar Kohli.
He also recalled Rohit’s tactical decisions in the T20 World Cup final against at Barbados on June 29, where he completed Jasprit Bumrah’s overs quickly, something that paid off in the end. “He’s tactically very good as a captain. In the T20 World Cup final, he finished Bumrah’s overs early. A lot of people may have questioned that, but that decision put us in a situation where 16 was needed in the last over.” “His tactical decisions on the field are spot on. Sitting outside, it can surprise coaches too. We, from outside, sometimes think ‘what’s he doing’, but after a while you realise what he has done.”
‘Always leads by example’
Former India batter Rathour who also served as national selector, admitted he is yet to come across a captain who is as invested in the game as Rohit. “He always has a clear game plan. Even as a leader, you have to lead from the front. You have to perform to set the example. And since he has become captain, he has always led by example. He’s a player’s captain. He spends a lot of time on the team’s strategy. He is part of the bowlers’ meeting and the batters’ meeting to try and understand what they are thinking. He invests a lot of time with the players,” he concluded.