India vice-captain Rohit Sharma’s live-chat series seems to be a hit among the fans. Following up his comically candid chats with Kevin Pietersen and Jasprit Bumrah from last week; ‘Hitman’ recently joined former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh over an Instagram live chat. The hard-hitting batting-duo discussed a variety of topics, ranging from cricket to other day-to-day aspects of their lives.
More interesting, though, was their analysis of modern-day media’s toxicity towards budding Indian cricketers. At one point, Rohit singled-out 22-year old wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant’s case; and criticized the mainstream media for subjecting Pant under constant scrutiny for his on-field performances.
Rohit started by emphasizing on the senior players’ responsibility to stay in constant conversation with the young stars of the team. The Mumbai Indians’ captain talked about the importance of imparting confidence within the young-guns of the team by staying in constant touch with the team. He further revealed that out of the 5-6 youngsters he always keeps in touch with; Pant is the one with whom he has the most chats, that too for a good reason. “I talk to Rishabh more, he is just 20-21, he was under so much of scrutiny that he got tensed,” Rohit revealed.
“Media should be mindful about what they write” – Rohit Sharma
Rohit feels that the main reason behind Pant’s tensed-state is the tremendous amount of pressure he faces from the media. Pant has been in and out of the national side ever since the home series against Australia earlier this January; with the team preferring to play KL Rahul most of the time. The public reaction, be it from mainstream media or the social media fans, has largely focused on trolling and maligning Pant for his absence from the team. Rohit appeals to each such community to be more mindful about what they write.
“Media thinks its part of their job to write, which is fine. But they should be sensible and think before writing something as it plays a huge part,” Rohit adds. His recent comments line-up well with some of the statements he had made back during the 2019 World Cup; where he had appealed to the media and fans to show more sensitivity towards the under-pressure players.
“You guys blatantly ask to throw a player out as he is not performing well. Please understand that there is an opposition team, who are trying to win as well,” he had explained. “Let the authorities take those decisions, you guys enjoy the game of cricket. We lose sometimes, but then we win more than losing these days.”
“Grab your chance, don’t wait to gain experience”
Yuvraj resonated with Rohit on the mainstream media’s excessively bashful nature. Further, ‘Yuvi’ opined that a budding player should first take the time to find their feet in international cricket before striving for all-format excellence. Rohit countered by talking about his case, and explained that for a player nowadays; it’s more important to make merry in the limited chances that they get.
“I tell them that if you have been in the team for one year, then don’t keep waiting to gain experience and start learning straight away, just take each innings as the last innings of your life,” Rohit concluded.
