Rohit Sharma’s chat with Rinku Singh after presser hailed by Moody: Great leadership

Former Australia cricketer Tom Moody praised Indian captain Rohit Sharma for his honest chat with Rinku Singh after the T20 World Cup press conference in Mumbai on May 2, Thursday.

Rohit was seen talking to Rinku at the Wankhede stadium ahead of the KKR vs MI clash on May 3. Rinku’s exclusion from the T20 World Cup squad has raised quite a few eyebrows, with many slamming the call.

Chief selector Ajit Agarkar would explain the reason behind the call and insisted it had nothing to do with the batter and was just down to combinations. Rohit’s interaction with Rinku was praised by Moody, who called it great leadership from the Indian skipper. Moody said that Rohit has good soft skills and is highly regarded amongst the players.

“That’s great leadership right there. Making sure you’re upfront and honest. It’s easier to speak to someone when they’re included in the squad, it’s always hard to speak to someone who has been left out.” “That’s why Rohit Sharma is so highly-regarded around the playing group. He is a very good leader. He’s got those soft skills, which is so important around communication,” said Moody.

Balance of the side: Moody on Rinku snub

Moody also said that it wasn’t Rinku’s fault that he was left out of the T20 World Cup squad as India just wanted to get in an extra all-rounder in the form of Axar Patel to give them more flexibility at the No.7 spot and play 3 spinners.

“For Rinku Singh, it doesn’t matter how many runs he gets in the rest of the IPL, it has to do with the balance of the side and Ajit Agarkar was actually clear in the way he explained it.”

“Rinku Singh has been left out because they want the extra all-rounder in Axar Patel to give them the flexibility around that No.7 spot and also the option of playing 3 spinners. It has nothing else to do with Rinku,” said Moody.

Despite not being a part of the main squad, Rinku would be travelling with to the USA and the Caribbean as a reserve player.