MUMBAI (Reuters) – Successive defeats by Pakistan and Sri Lanka have left India on the brink of exiting the Asia Cup but captain Rohit Sharma is not concerned about their form ahead of next month’s T20 World Cup.
Sri Lanka defeated defending champions India by six wickets with a ball to spare in a Super Four match on Tuesday at the continental T20 tournament, which is being held in the United Arab Emirates.
Rohit’s team also lost to arch-rivals Pakistan in their first Super Four match,, and India’s hopes of making Sunday’s final depend on other results going in their favour.
Since winning the 50-overs World Cup at home in 2011 and the ICC Champions Trophy two years later, India have failed to win a global event.
“In tournaments like Asia Cup and World Cup, where there are multiple opponents, there is more pressure,” Rohit told reporters. “In a bilateral series you play against the same opposition for three-five matches so you can plan better.
“Our job is to guide the players in making better decisions in pressure situations.”
Just over a month out from the T20 World Cup in Australia, Rohit said there will be very few changes to the squad.
“The team is 90-95% settled. Few changes will happen, that’s about it,” he said.
“There are lot of questions that we need to answer and in the last three or four series that we’ve played, we’ve found some answers. There will be a time where we will draw the line and we’ll say this is the combination that we’re going to play.”
The Asia Cup defeats had not dampened the squad’s spirits, said Rohit.
“All the players are relaxed and chilled,” added Rohit, who bats at the top of the order.
“We want to maintain an atmosphere in the dressing room which does not change based on a win or a loss. There’s nothing lacking as such, the team has quality.
“We have played and won so many matches.”
(Reporting by Sudipto Ganguly; editing by Peter Rutherford)
