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Shashank Singh of Punjab Kings wants to play under Rohit Sharma, inspired by his support and tactics. Rohit, a five-time IPL winner, will play as a batter next season.
Shashank Singh (Sportzpics Photo)
Punjab Kings (PBKS) batter Shashank Singh wishes to play under Rohit Sharma‘s captaincy once in his life, having been inspired by the Mumbaikar’s backing for his players, tactical shrewdness, and funny ‘one-liners’.
Rohit has won five IPL titles with Mumbai Indians as the captain but, having stepped down from the position last year, he’ll play only as a batter in the coming season. Rohit has led India to two ICC titles — the 2024 T20 World Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy — and is said to be aiming to stay fit till the 2027 ODI World Cup.
“Everyone says that he [Rohit] backs his players to the hilt; gives them plenty of chances. He is a very smart captain. His one-liners (on the field) are also quite funny. If you ask me one captain I would want to play under, it will be Rohit Sharma,” Shashank said on Shubhankar Mishra’s YouTube channel. “He is from Bombay. I have also batted with him once. He was not the captain back then. I want to play under his leadership, that’s my wish.”
Speaking about another Mumbaikar, Shashank backed Prithvi Shaw to come good for Mumbai and India again after ‘rectifying’ his ‘mistakes’. He also said that it was a misconception that Shaw didn’t work on his fitness.
“If someone says he doesn’t work on his fitness, I won’t agree. He plays Ranji Trophy, he has played Tests, T20Is, ODIs, IPL. And it’s not like he has played for just the sake of playing. He has performed well and helped his teams win matches. Prithvi is a human being, mistakes can happen. He just needs to modify and rectify his mistakes. Prithvi Shaw has glimpses of Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag. Of course, you can’t take away the DNA from those players, but Shaw has shown glimpses of their batting,” Shashank added.
Shaw came to the auction for the first time in the 2025 edition and went unsold. He has lost his place in the Indian team, too.
As for Shashank, he’ll be seen in PBKS colors for their campaign opener against Gujarat Titans on March 25. The finishing batter had a breakout season in 2024 scoring 354 runs in 14 innings at an average of 44.25 and a strike-rate of 164.65.