Thaindian News

Sydney, Jan 1 (IANS) Indian batsman Rohit Sharma says he is fully prepared to play in the second Test against Australia in case he gets selected in the playing XI over Virat Kohli.

Sharma said there will be no lack of intensity in his training even if he doesn’t get a game in the four-match series.

“Of course I am ready for the game,” Sharma told reporters at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).

“I don’t want to be unprepared. My preparation has to be 100 percent. It doesn’t matter if I am playing or not. The preparation has to always be the same. I have to be ready to play each and every time. Because you never know, somebody might get injured on the day of the Test. You have to be ready.”

Sharma might be preferred over Kohli, who failed in both the innings at Melbourne and has scored 107 runs in seven Test innings while playing overseas.

India suffered a crushing defeat against Australia in the first Test but Sharma said the morale of the team is “very good” ahead of the second match beginning here Tuesday.

“We really had a good time off. We had a team get-together yesterday, which was nice. And we got back again today to see how we are going to take it forward. We don’t want to think about what has happened. We need to focus on what we have to do now. The process is still on. Hopefully things will turn around for us.

“We spoke about what went wrong, and what we need to do, and stuff like that. Which always happens, whether you win or lose. As I said, we need to keep doing the right things,” said Sharma, who is yet to make his Test debut.

When asked about the team composition for the match, Sharma said: “We have not decided anything yet. Maybe tomorrow we will have a better idea as to what the wicket will be like. Probably by tomorrow I will be told whether I am playing or not.”