NEW DELHI: Captaining India is such an honour for Rohit Sharma that he would not fuss whether it’s full time or sporadic, the stylish opener said on Thursday.

Virat Kohli leads India across formats but former players including Yuvraj Singh see merit in split captaincy with limited-overs stalwart Sharma as the white-ball leader.

Sharma captained India to Asia Cup victory last year and, with Kohli resting, will lead the side again in the three-match Twenty20 series against Bangladesh starting in New Delhi on Sunday.

Sharma has also polished his leadership credentials by leading Mumbai Indians to four Indian Premier League titles but was not too hung up on permanent captaincy in the shorter formats.

“Look, these are beyond our controls,” Sharma, the only batsman with three 200-plus scores in One-day Internationals, told reporters on Thursday. “Captaining India is a massive honour, be it for one match, 10 matches or 100 matches. When we were younger, the dream we had was of playing for India, not of leading India.

“I got this opportunity to lead the team, and it’s a great honour. I have captained team in the past and it was a good experience.

“I never think ‘why did they make me captain for just one series or two series. Why not for a full year?’

“I don’t think or even talk about these things. Whenever I get these opportunities, I happily shoulder the responsibility and try to set an example.”

The 32-year-old Mumbai player has revived his stop-start long-format career by reinventing himself as a Test opener in the 3-0 rout of South Africa earlier this month.

Rohit, who was adjudged man of the series after finishing as the top scorer, will face a new challenge in the two-Test series against Bangladesh, which will include a day-night Test in Kolkata.

“It will be very exciting, it being our first Test in pink ball,” he said. “I can’t talk about others but I played a Duleep Trophy match with pink balls and it was a good experience.

“We have been waiting to play a Test with pink balls and finally the opportunity is here. We will try to do well and get all 60 points [under World Test Championship].”

Published in Dawn, November 1st, 2019