Jaipur, Nov 16 (FN Agency) Team India Captain Rohit Sharma said players are not machines and taking time off is necessary for players to refresh themselves to face the next challenge. “Players are not machines, they just walk out and play back-to-back. So, taking time off is necessary. Because freshness is necessary, which we did by resting many boys in this series and Test matches. We want our boys to be in a good mental state in the coming series. So, we have to monitor the workload in every series and see what we can do after that,” he told reporters at a pre-match press conference here. Joining the issue, Head Coach Rahul Dravid said he is looking at making the team formidable in all formats by giving adequate rest and keeping them fit for bigger challenges. “At this point of time, we are not going to do that. I am going to be in conversation with the players to learn about fitness.
In times like these, we need to respect the players’ physical and mental health. And, especially those players who will be playing all formats of the game. I want them to be fresh and switched on,” he said. “So, to answer your query, I would not be looking at separate teams for different formats, but definitely looking at players’ health and well being, so that players are fit and get all our good players on the park and fully fit and ready to go. If we do this, we will be a very formidable team in any of the formats,” Dravid added. India take on New Zealand in their first T20I match tomorrow. Dravid also said workload should mandatorily be managed like many football players do while playing year-long tournaments. “We need to do this balancing act at a time like this and work towards getting everyone fit and ready obviously for big tournaments,” he added. He further said workload management is not only a challenge for India, but also for every playing country, which is reflected in New Zealand Captain Kane Williamson deciding to rest himself for the T20I series against India.
“It is not us only doing it (workload management). If you see even Kane Williamson is doing it. He is not playing in the T20 series. So, every country is recognising the importance of workload management. Everybody is doing it. Therefore, it is not only our challenge, but everybody’s,” he said. Replying to a query, Rohit said India will not follow the template of other teams, but do what suits the team best. “There are holes we need to fill up. That will be the biggest challenge for us. I am not going to say that we are going to follow other teams’ templates. We will do what suits us best. The players play a different role in Syed Mushtaq Ali franchises and in the national team. We need to define specific roles for players,” he said. Rohit said he will allow players to play fearlessly. I think it’s one of the important aspects of the format where people have the assurance and go and take their chances. If it comes off great if not no problem. Our role will be crucial in letting people play fearlessly. We need to give them assurance,” he added. On his vision for Team India, Dravid said the team will look to improve overall. He also said the players don’t prioritize, but give equal importance to all the three formats and accordingly prepare for those.