T20 World Cup selection: What Ajit Agarkar and Rohit Sharma said about KL Rahul, Rinku Singh, Pandya & Kohli

BCCI Chief selector Ajit Agarkar and Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma today addressed a press conference during which they talked about India's selection strategy and on many other topics. Here's what they said.

On captaincy:
Rohit Sharma: "I was captain. Not being captain and then again captain. It's part of life. Not everything will go your way. It's been a great experience. Before in my life, I was also not captain and played under different captains. It's nothing to me. I have always tried to do what's required as a player and I have tried to do that in the last 1 month."


Ajit Agarkar: We knew Hardik Pandya has led in few series but Rohit Sharma's form in the world cup. Rohit is a great player and it's not forced upon us (him being the captain).

On KL Rahul: BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar said, "KL Rahul has been opening in the IPL. We were mainly looking for middle-order options. So, we felt that Samson and Pant are better suited for that. Samson can bat anywhere in the lineup. So, it was just about what we needed and not about who was better."

On Hardik Panya: "He's coming after a longish layoff. We are hoping he's working on it. Especially the way he bowls, he'll give (captain) Rohit a lot of balance and options," said Agarkar.

On Rinku Singh: "Not his fault that he missed out. Did nothing wrong and Shubman Gill as well for that matter. It was all about the combination we wanted. Wanted to have enough options with regards to wristspinners. Chahal, Kuldeep give us that. Axar Patel is the allrounder and then two wicketkeepers," Agarkar said.

On Kohli: Ajit Agarkar said, "We have not been discussing his strike-rate. There's difference between IPL and international cricket. You need experience. We have got enough balance and power in the team. You look and try take positives from what is happening in IPL. Pressure of a World Cup game is different."

On Shivam Dube: Rohit said, "We picked Shivam Dube based on what he has done in IPL and a few games he played before IPL."

On Playing XI: "Don't know how the pitch will be in USA. We are playing in West Indies but different venues. You have to look at the opposition combinations as well. One thing that we looked at was middle-order hitting. Our top-order hitting has been alright, not that bad. We wanted someone to play that role in the middle overs freely, without worrying about who is bowling. Shivam Dube was the guy who showed this in IPL. Again, no guarantee what our playing XI will be like. Will decide based on practice and the combination of our opposition," said Rohit.

On IPL's impact: Rohit Sharma said he had figured out 70 to 80 per cent of the T20 World Cup squad before the IPL. "You sort of make the playing eleven in your mind and work around it. A lot of preparations and talks and guys playing games happen during the IPL, lot of them are playing the format for a while now

"The talk of what are final 15 is going to be started much before IPL. It is just few spots we had to look in the IPL. In IPL performances changes everyday. Anyone will come and score a hundred or to take five wickets. We knew 70-80 percent of our squad (before the IPL)," he added.

On four spinners: Captain Rohit Sharma said, "I wanted four spinners. Match starts at probably 10-10:30 am in the morning. There's a little bit of technical aspect in picking four spinners. Probably will address during the World Cup. And three seamers with Hardik being the fourth. You get the balance. With two spinners – Jadeja and Axar – allrounders can bat. We will decide our combinations depending on the opposition. There's a chance both Kuldeep and Chahal play together. All sorts of combination possible."

On pitches in US: Rohit said, "I've never played in New York. So don't know what pitches are like there."