'Nobody wants to sit outside' - Rohit Sharma on his mindset after he was asked to open in Test cricket

The outbreak of coronavirus has taken a toll across the globe as more than 1.7 lakh deaths have been registered so far. The sporting scenario has also been affected by the pandemic as all major tournaments and series have been called off or postponed in the wake of the pandemic. Amid the quarantine period, cricketers are left with no choice but to spend their idle time on Instagram or Twitter.

During the lockdown period, many cricketers are Twitter Q&A or Instagram live. Rohit Sharma is one such cricketer who is spending ample time on social media these days. The prolific opener has interacted with several players like Kevin Pietersen, Yuzvendra Chahal and Jasprit Bumrah on Instagram live.

Earlier, Rohit also shared his daily routine and gave a glimpse of all his activities during the quarantine period. Meanwhile, the Mumbai batsman on Wednesday was in conversation with Boria Majumdar (India Today Consulting Editor) where he answered a plethora of questions.

‘I was ready for an opportunity’: Rohit Sharma

The right-hander also revealed his state of mind when he was asked to open in Test cricket. Rohit said that talks of him opening in Test for India started a couple of years ago. According to him, nobody wants to sit outside and watch the game and hence, Rohit was ready for any grab any opportunity that was thrown at him.

“There were talks going on even before I opened in Tests, I was told I might open in Tests as well. It was 2 years ago when these talks started, I was preparing myself from there onwards. I was in that mindset that I could open at any given point. At the end of the day, you want an opportunity. Nobody wants to sit outside and watch the game,” said Rohit.

“I didn’t want to be outside. I was ready for any opportunity that was thrown at me. When it finally came, I was ready. It’s just that I worked on a few technical aspects,” he added.

Rohit was looking forward to playing in challenging conditions such as New Zealand but an injury forced him out of the series. However, Rohit is eager to test himself in Australia with the red-ball. He also opined about facing the Aussies in Tests with Smith and Warner back in their side.

“It will be a great Test series. I know, Australia in their own backyard with those 2 guys back will be a different ball game. As a team, us, we are playing our best cricket. We have got our bowlers and batters in the right frame of mind. We are quite looking forward to that series. If it happens, it will be a great series to be part of,” said India’s limited-overs vice-captain.