Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma revealed that he thinks of himself as the least important person in the squad and instead, always tries to ensure that he gets the most out of his teammates whenever they take the field in the Indian Premier League.
Rohit, the most successful IPL skipper with 4 titles, opened up on his team’s success and how he likes to lead the team on the first episode of India Today Inspiration season 2.
“I want my teammates to be on the same page as I am. When I talk to my player I think of myself as the least important person in the squad. I think as if I’m not important, you are important because you are going to execute the plans so whatever you want I will do it.
“When I’m leading the side I’m the least important person. That’s how I want to think because if I’m thinking about how to take the team forward myself I won’t be able to do it. I’m thinking that I’m the last member of the squad and the other 10 are important for me. That’s how I will get the best out of them.
“I see how I can get little contributions from all the players. And of course, my performance is also important. I want to make sure that the 10 guys who are playing and the other players on the bench, I should be talking to them and make them feel important. And that is something that I learned from Ricky Ponting (former MI player and coach),” Rohit said on Inspiration.
“The first thing Ponting told me that when you are captaining you can’t be thinking about how you want them to do it. Always listen to them, take it in your stride and then filter it and give it to them. It was great learning for me when he was a part of Mumbai.”
When asked how he looks after the youngsters to get the best out of them, Rohit said: “Those players will come out good or will be at their best when they are not under pressure. When there is not too much talking going on about them in the squad. They get to know all these things.
“Airport ho, or if you are sitting in a taxi and the driver is telling you how you shouldn’t have gotten out in a particular way. It’s not easy to deal with all that. When you are on the field people are expecting so much from all the cricketers who are playing for India. It’s something you can’t control because that’s the love for the game in the people.
