Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma has firmly denied recent media reports claiming he held a meeting with BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar and head coach Rahul Dravid to discuss the upcoming T20 World Cup squad selection. In a light-hearted interview on the “Club Praire Fire Podcast” with Adam Gilchrist and Michael Vaughan, Sharma dismissed the speculations as “fake” and urged fans to rely on official communication channels.
“I haven’t met anyone,” Rohit Sharma said with a laugh. “Ajit Agarkar is somewhere in Dubai, playing Golf. Rahul Dravid is watching his kid play in Bengaluru. He was in Mumbai, actually. He was… He got him to play on a red soil wicket here at CCI (Cricket Club of India). That’s about it.”
WATCH – Rohit Sharma Talks About Convincing Dhoni And Karthik For T20 World Cup 2024
Rohit Sharma emphasized the importance of verifying information before accepting it as fact. “We haven’t met, to be honest. In today’s day and age, unless you hear it from either myself, Rahul himself, Ajit himself, or someone from the BCCI coming and talking in front of the camera, everything is fake,” he added.
Earlier reports on Wednesday, April 17, claimed that Sharma met with Agarkar and Dravid to discuss crucial selection matters, including the need for Hardik Pandya to bowl more frequently in IPL 2024. These same reports also speculated about a potential opening partnership between Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli for the T20 World Cup.
While Virat Kohli currently leads the IPL 2024 run-scorers chart with 361 runs at a staggering average of 72.20, Rohit sits comfortably with 261 runs from six matches at an average of 52.20, including a recent century against Chennai Super Kings. Hardik Pandya, however, has not lived up to expectations this season, scoring only 131 runs in six innings and picking up just three wickets.
Shifting the focus to a lighter note, former England captain Michael Vaughan asked Sharma to name one player he would select for the T20 World Cup squad purely for entertainment value. Sharma, known for his sense of humour, chose Rishabh Pant.
ALSO READ: Sunil Joshi Provides Injury Update On Shikhar Dhawan Ahead Of PBKS Clash
“All these guys are quite crazy to be honest,” Rohit Sharma said. “If anyone, who makes me laugh, then it’s Rishabh Pant. He is one crazy guy. I have been watching him since he was a kid. I was quite disappointed when he missed a year-and-a-half due to that accident. He is quite witty. The kind of stuff he does behind the stumps makes you laugh. He has got his own way of doing this, this is what I like about it.”
After a heartbreaking loss in the 2023 ODI World Cup final, India is hungry for an ICC trophy. They will be looking to break their drought with a strong performance in the upcoming T20 World Cup, co-hosted by the West Indies and the USA. While speculation continues to swirl around the team selection, fans can rely on official BCCI channels for accurate information.
