Rahul Dravid Defends Rohit Sharma's Absence From Team India For Ind vs SA 1st T20I

Head coach Rahul Dravid defended BCCI's decision of not including some seasoned campaigners, including senior opener Rohit Sharma in national team's first assignment post conclusion of IPL 2022.

Rahul Dravid defended BCCI's decision of not including seasoned campaigner Rohit Sharma. ( Image Source :AFP )

New Delhi: Indian cricket team's all-format skipper Rohit Sharma has been rested by the Board of Control for Cricket In India (BCCI) for upcoming India vs South Africa five-match T20 International series, starting from June 9 Thursday. Keeping in mind the workload management after a grueling season of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022, BCCI rested several senior players like Virat, Pant, Shami, and Bumah for the T20 series. A second-string young Indian team faces the big challenge of taking on a star-studded South African lineup. 

Ahead of Ind vs SA 1st T20I, team India head coach Rahul Dravid defended BCCI's decision of not including some seasoned campaigners, including senior opener Rohit Sharma in national team's first assignment post conclusion of IPL 2022.

 

"Rohit is our all-format player. It would be unwise to expect everyone to be available all the time. We want them to be fit and fresh as well. There would be times where we would have to rest our big players," Dravid told reporters ahead of Ind vs SA series opener in Delhi.

 

"We are looking for good starts. We know our top 3. If it is high-scoring games, we would want them to maintain that strike rate throughout but there would be tricky matches too. We have the kind of quality at top 3, who can deliver," added Dravid.

 

India vs South Africa T20I Schedule

 

Ind vs SA 1st T20I: June 9 in Delhi

Ind vs SA 2nd T20: June 12 in Cuttack

Ind vs SA 3rd T20I: June 14 in Visakhapatnam

Ind vs SA 4th T20I: June 17 in Rajkot

Ind vs SA 5th T20I: June 19 in Bengaluru