‘Practicing seam bowling to add variety in my game’

Rohit Sharma is “practising seam bowling” to add to his aggressive brand of batsmanship, which he feels can be a vital asset in the days to come, at a time when India is struggling to churn out quality all-rounders.

“I have started practising seam bowling at the nets. It’s not an old thing as I started bowling seam-up stuff recently at the nets during our Test series in Sri Lanka. I am just bowling seamers and I need to speak to our bowling coach Bharath Arun to see how I can further improve,” Rohit said during an exclusive interview ahead of South Africa series. “My idea is to add value to the side. If I can bowl 10-12 overs per day and could be that third or fourth seamer of the side according to conditions, my captain could be relieved. It is just that you need to constantly grow and add things in your armoury,” the stylish Mumbai batsman said.

While critics have panned him for not converting promising starts in the Sri Lanka Test series, the 28-year-old believes that his performance was satisfying considering that his twin half-centuries came in a winning cause. “I am satisfied with my performance in the Test matches. I know there was a chance to score a big <g data-gr-id="30">hundred</g> but my 50 in the third Test was satisfying. But I am not sitting on my laurels and would like to improve on it,” said Rohit, who has scored 4312 ODI and 870 Test runs, apart from 739 in T20s.

There had been times his dismissals invited criticism, with some attributing it to his lazy elegance, but Rohit believes that it is not easy to tweak someone’s natural game. “People can say whatever they <g data-gr-id="29">like</g> but I can’t change my natural game that has been there for 10 years. It’s not going to change overnight. May be my stance, head position, some little things I might be able to improvise. I understand how people and media react. They watch the match only and come to a conclusion about a player’s approach.