Mumbai, May 31 (IANS) Suresh Raina, India’s captain for a Twenty20 fixture and ODI series in the West Indies, said Tuesday that the absence of senior players have opened up a big room of opportunities for young players to perform.
Raina admitted that it was a great honour for him to lead the side and he was looking forward to a great series in the Caribbean.
‘I am looking forward to the opportunity and hope to take the team to success on the tour. There are players who have been included in the side who have done very well in first-class matches. The tour will be a good opportunity for all of them,’ said the 25-year-old Raina, who was appointed as the captain after Gautam Gambhir was rested.
‘It’s a great opportunity for the youngsters who have done well in domestic cricket. I hope they will do well,’ said Raina at the pre-departure media conference along with newly-appointed chief coach Duncan Fletcher.
‘I am really honoured to be leading the side. I am happy with the side as we have some very good batsmen in Rohit Sharma, Manoj Tiwary, S Badrinath, Shikhar Dhawan all of whom have done well in first-class cricket.
‘Badrinath especially has done well in first-class cricket and deserves to be in the team. I hope we will do well in the West Indies,’ said Raina who will hand over the reins to Dhoni when he returns for the three-Test series to be held after the conclusion of the five ODIs.
Fletcher said he was big supporter of the rotation policy as it gives some rest to the senior players.
‘While I was in England, I started the rotation policy resting senior guys. I was heavily criticised by the English authorities. It’s important to do that considering the heavy schedule. We need to look into the matter as we go into the future,’ said the Zimbabwe-born Fletcher.
‘There is a lot of talent in India and my job is to prepare these youngsters. It’s a pleasure to blood them in ODIs,’ said Fletcher.
On the club-versus-country debate, Fletcher said: ‘That’s the way it is in modern day sports. We have to ensure that all the players are fit enough.’
On the West Indies tour, Fletcher said: ‘Any team playing at home is difficult to beat. We should not be complacent,’ said the new coach who said he intended not to look too far ahead in his job.’
Fletcher, however, said that the forthcoming tours of England and Australia will be tough for India.
‘Yes, we would like to beat England in England and Australia in Australia. But the first job is the tour of West Indies. It’s very important not to look too far down the road. India have a plan to stay at the top. The young players have the potential and this tour will show the depth of talent we have,’ he said.
