'Want to get into the phase I was before the 2019 World Cup': Rohit Sharma

India skipper Rohit Sharma on Monday said that he was looking to rediscover his form he was in before the 2019 ODI World Cup that was held in England.

Rohit went onto amass 648 runs from just nine matches at the 2019 World Cup, where India lost to New Zealand in the semi-finals.

Four years later, Rohit is gearing up to lead India in the 2023 ODI World Cup on home turf.

Shouldering more than a billion hopes, the 36-year-old India skipper knows what’s at stake in the ODI World Cup, which starts October 5 with England taking on New Zealand in Ahmedabad.

“For me, it is important how I keep myself relaxed and not worry about external factors that play a role, whether positively or not negatively. I want to shut out everything,” Rohit told PTI in an exclusive interview just before joining the Asia Cup camp in Benglauru.

“I want to get into the phase I was in before the 2019 World Cup,” said Rohit, who carries an aura of Zen even in the most tense of situations.

The same calm was visible as he put across his point of view in an uncomplicated manner during the interview, just like the straight face of his bat when he hits the bowler’s back-drive.

“I was in great frame of mind and prepared really well for the tournament,” he said referring to the last edition, where he scored 648 runs with an unprecedented five hundreds to emerge as the highest run-getter.

“I was in good shape, good mindset. I want to bring that back and I have time to do that. Trying to recollect what were the right things that I was doing before the 2019 World Cup as a cricketer and as a person. I want to revisit that thought-process of mine personally,” the skipper said.

World Cups and the vagaries associated with the results can change a lot of things but for Rohit, one month of cricket can’t make or break the player that he is.

“A person can’t change overnight with his success or failures,” he said.

“I don’t think one result or one championship can change me as a person. I have not changed as a person in the last 16 years and I don’t think anything needs to change on that front,” he said.

“The focus will be on how I can achieve my goals in the next two months, for me and my team. A person can’t change in a period of one or two months.” Rohit has won five IPL titles as Mumbai Indians captain, Asia Cup as India captain (2018) and led the team to World Test Championship final as recently as June this year.

Do you ever think about your legacy in Indian cricket after being around for 16 years? “No,” pat came the reply. “I am not the person who thinks about what kind of legacy I will leave behind. My legacy will be for people to judge and talk about. Not for me to say.” He has 30 ODI hundreds, second only to Virat Kohli’s 46. Add 10 Test hundreds and four T20I tons. A total of 17,000 plus international runs aren’t bad numbers.

“I am not a firm believer in numbers. You should be happy and enjoy the time you have in-front of you, and try to live in that kind of moment. I am thinking about what gives me happiness,” he added.

“For me, it’s all about creating memories and creating a good rapport with my teammates. Be happy in whatever you get and whatever you have.”

With inputs from PTI