Florida: India vice-captain Rohit Sharma, who owns three T20 international centuries and has most runs in the shortest format of the game, is also eyeing another T20I record in the upcoming West Indies vs India T20 series. The talismanic batsman has a chance to become a player with the most number of sixes in the format.
Sharma currently has 102 sixes to his credit and needs four more to dethrone Windies batsman Chris Gayle from the top spot.
The left-handed Gayle will not be playing the T20I series as he has been rested by the Windies team management.
Gayle has 105 sixes to his name, whereas Kiwi batsman Martin Guptill is on the second position with 103 sixes. Sharma is currently placed third on the list.
The 32-year-old is currently the highest run-scorer in T20Is and he also holds the record for the most number of centuries (four) in the T20I format.
India will take on West Indies in three T20Is, three ODIs and two Test matches.
There were wide speculations regarding the rift between skipper Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. However, Kohli dismissed these reports at the pre-departure conference saying, "If I do not like a person or if I am insecure of a person, you will see that on my face or in my behaviour towards that person and that is how simple it is. I have always praised Rohit whenever I have had an opportunity because I believe he is that good. We have had no issues."
"If the team environment is not good, then the kind of game we are playing for the last two-three years, it would have not been possible. I know how important the dressing room atmosphere, the trust factor is to succeed in international cricket. Our journey from number seven to number one and such consistent performance in the ODI cricket, it cannot happen without camaraderie, respect, and understanding," he had said.
India's squad for the T20 matches: Virat Kohli (C), Rohit Sharma (VC), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant (wk), Krunal Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Rahul Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Deepak Chahar, Navdeep Saini.
West Indies' 14-member squad for first two T20Is against India: John Campbell, Evin Lewis, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicolas Pooran, Kieron Pollard, Rovman Powell, Carlos Brathwaite (c), Keemo Paul, Sunil Narine, Sheldon Cottrell, Oshane Thomas, Anthony Bramble, Andre Russell, Khary Pierre.
India takes on West Indies in the first T20I of the three-match series on Saturday, August 3 in Florida.
