Rohit Sharma enjoying opener's role, feels it's his best phase in international cricket

Rohit Sharma39s success in the role of an opener has given a new lease of life to his international career and the promising batsman believes that the current run of form has been quotthe best and most satisfying phasequot since he donned India colours quotFrom the point of view of consistency this has certainly been the best phase as an international cricketer I am enjoying my new role as an opener That I have been successful and my contribution has helped the team39s cause makes it even more satisfying I am hoping to keep up the good workquot Sharma told PTI in an interview today With 217 runs at an average of 5425 including two fifties Rohit Sharma was the leading rungetter for India in the recently concluded TriNations series PicAFP In the 12 matches since he was asked to open the talented 26yearold Mumbaikar has scored five halfcenturies apart from two near50 scores and Sharma attributes it to the sound technique that he possesses quotI was always confident about my technique The opener39s job is specialized one but I always knew that I could hold my own if I am given an opportunity at the top of the order Also I have opened a couple of times in T2039s for India so it wasn39t an entirely new experiencequot said Sharma who scored a matchwinning 83 against England in Mohali on his maiden appearance as an opener On his own admission the offer to open the innings came suddenly to him quotI wasn39t exactly surprised but I knew that it would be challenging But then in life when challenges are thrown at you you should believe in your instincts and go for it The innings of 83 against England wasn39t the best but certainly an effort that proved to be a morale booster for mequot stated Sharma who has scored 2459 runs in 98 ODIs with two centuries and 17 halfcenturies Asked about the change in ODI opener39s role since two new balls are being used he admitted that it is indeed a big challenge quotThe opener39s role with two new balls coming into play has changed It39s no longer going after the bowling from the word 39go39 There are a few shots which should be avoided during the initial oversquot he said quotFor example when the ball is pitched up one would love to play drive but now it is better to be a bit watchful Having said that I am not saying that one shouldn39t play his natural gamequot Sharma explained He has faced scathing criticism and intense media scrutiny after the initial failures but nothing has perturbed him quotWhen people said a lot of things I was not really disturbed as I knew my ability My job is to focus on my game and I try to do that I can39t stop someone from writing whatever he feels like I would rather concentrate on my job and that is to score runsquot Sharma has captained Mumbai Indians to their maiden IPL triumph and leading the likes of Sachin Tendulkar Ricky Ponting Lasith Malinga has certainly helped him grow as a cricketer quotI won39t say that leading someone like Sachin Tendulkar or Ricky Ponting made me conscious but certainly more responsible The moment you become captain you not only have to lead by example with your own performances but also be responsible for field placings and bowling changes Responsibility always makes you a better cricketerquot he opined Rohit Sharma 2nd from right led the Mumbai Indians to their maiden IPL title in the tournament39s sixth season File Pic Sharma scored 538 runs including four halfcenturies in 19 matches in the sixth edition of the IPL However he was guarded about the fact when asked whether he would like to open in longer version in South Africa too since he has got some success in the shorter format quotI wouldn39t like to make any comments on the South Africa tour That39s still some time away and I would like to wait and watch and only react to the situation Let that situation arisequot he concluded