'Unko khilane ka kya faida jinko bhook nahi': Rohit Sharma amid controversy over Ishant Kishan, Shreyas Iyer

New entrants like Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Akash Deep played a huge role in India's overall success in test series against England, leaving skipper Rohit Sharma mighty pleased and also quite clear about the kind of talent he wants in the side. But, the hitman had sent a stern message for aspirants wanting to make the national Test team without putting in the hard work by saying that opportunities will only be given to those who show "hunger for success" in the "toughest" format.

"Jin logon ko bhookh hai, hum unhi logon ko mauka denge (We will give opportunities to only those who are hungry)," Rohit declared, making it clear that the team management is not willing to entertain players who do not display a burning desire to perform.

"Agar hunger nahi hai to unko khila ke koi matlab nahi hai (There's point in playing those who don't have the hunger)," he said.


The Indian skipper made his comments in the backdrop of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) asking players like Ishan Kishan, and Shreyas Iyer to turn up for Ranji Trophy matches. However, the duo have been missing the matches.

Kishan who is part of the highly successful Mumbai Indians team skipped the Ranji Trophy for his state Jharkhand and was spotted in Baroda, training with Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya for the IPL scheduled next month.

"I don't see anyone in the team here who is not hungry. All the boys who are here and also those who are not, they all want to play. But the thing with Test cricket is that you get very few opportunities. If you don't utilise them, they go away," he asserted.

'Test cricket is toughest format'
"Test cricket is the toughest format. If you want to excel and achieve success in this format, you have to show the hunger," said Rohit Sharma.

Without naming anyone, Rohit pointed out the stringent selection criteria set by the team management.

"Yeh pata chal jata hai kisko bhookh nahin hai aur kin logon ko yahan pe rehna nahin hai. Yeh pata chalta hai. Jo logon ko bhookh hai, tough conditions mein khelna hai, un logon ko preference diya jayega. (It becomes apparent who is not hungry and who does not want to stay here. Those who are hungry, who want to play in tough conditions, will be given preference). It's very simple," he emphasised.

"IPL is a very good format for us, but this is the toughest format and difficult to excel. You have to work hard to win...the last three wins didn't come easy, bowlers had to do long spell, batsmen had to grind it out. It's tough," he explained.

(With PTI inputs)