Mumbai, Oct 15 (IANS) Former India captain Rohit Sharma recently offered a glimpse into the lighter side of the Indian cricket team's dressing room while on the show, ‘Family Full House with Rohit Sharma’.

He recalled how former cricketer Yuvraj Singh would scold young players when they joined the team and added that he loved them equally, and also revealed how Rishabh Pant loved spending time with children during long international tours.

Star comedian Krushna Abhishek asked Rohit to imagine what some of his fellow cricketers would have been if they had not pursued cricket, based on their personalities.

The conversation led to Rohit giving some amusing job titles to Jasprit Bumrah, Yuvraj Singh and Rishabh Pant.

When asked about Jasprit Bumrah, Rohit called him a doctor, drawing a comparison with the pacer's ability to rescue the team in pressure situations, particularly during the death overs.

“Bumrah, I think, hote doctor, kyunki poore desh ko aage aake bachate hain yaar. Last-last mein aake ball daalte hain, team ko bachate hain. Matlab, bahut kam log karte hain. Isliye hum cricket mein bhi bolte hain, death overs mein doctors log hi death se bachate hain.”

(I think Bumrah would have been a doctor because he steps up and saves the entire country. He comes in to bowl towards the end and saves the team. Very few people can do that. That is why, in cricket, we say that doctors are the ones who save us from death in the death overs)

Moving on to former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh, Rohit gave him the title of a ‘headmaster’, recalling how the senior cricketer would discipline younger players when they were new to the team. He also acknowledged the affection Yuvraj showed them.

“Yuvraj Singh ko main bolunga headmaster, kyunki unki ye aadat thi. Abhi nahi hai, lekin jab hum nayi-nayi team mein aaye the, 2006 ya 2007 mein, toh woh bahut daantte the young bachchon ko. Bahut pyaar bhi karte the.”

(I would call Yuvraj Singh a headmaster because he had that habit. He may not be like that now, but when we had just joined the team in 2006 or 2007, he used to scold the young players a lot. He also showed them a lot of affection)

Rohit further recalled how Yuvraj helped him feel comfortable in the Indian team during his early days, when playing alongside senior cricketers could be intimidating for a newcomer.

“Jaise mere pehle-doosre tour ke baad, mujhe unhone bahut comfortable kiya tha, kyunki, you know, kabhi-kabhi hota hai ki aap itne bade senior ke saath khel rahe ho, toh hamesha se thoda sa darr rehta hai, initially. Toh us darr ko actually inhone thoda-thoda kam kiya. Time laga, lekin kam hua.”

(After my first or second tour, he made me feel very comfortable. Sometimes, when you are playing alongside such senior players, you naturally feel a little intimidated initially. He gradually helped reduce that fear. It took time, but it did happen)

Rohit had another amusing observation when Krushna asked him about Rishabh Pant. The former India captain described the wicketkeeper-batter as a ‘babysitter’, explaining that Pant enjoyed spending time with the children of fellow cricketers during lengthy overseas tours.

“Babysitter, kyunki unko bachchon ke saath khelna kaafi pasand hai. Kyunki hum aksar lambe tour pe jaate the, do-do dhai-dhai mahine ke tour hote the. Toh main hamesha dekhta tha, hamari practice ke baad Rishabh aa jaate hain, bachchon ke saath khelte hain, kyunki hum saare logon ki families aur bachche saath mein travel karte the.”

(A babysitter, because he really likes playing with children. We often went on long tours, sometimes lasting two to two-and-a-half months. I would always see Rishabh coming over to play with the children after our practice, because our families and kids travelled with us)

Adding to the anecdote, Rohit revealed that Pant would sometimes eat from the children's plates, much to their annoyance. He also shared how the nickname ‘babysitter’ became associated with Pant during India's tour of Australia.

“Halaanki, kabhi-kabhi bachchon ki hi plate se khaana kha jaate the aur bachche kaafi naraaz hote the, but pyaar se karte the. Toh unko famous naam diya bhi hai. Australia mein jab hum khel rahe the, toh unke jo captain the, Tim Paine, us time pe unhone Rishabh ko babysitter kehkar bulaya tha. Woh hamesha bachchon mein kaafi famous hain.”

(However, sometimes he would eat from the children's plates, and the children would get quite annoyed, but he did it affectionately. He was also given a famous nickname. When we were playing in Australia, their captain at the time, Tim Paine, called Rishabh a babysitter. He has always been very popular with children)

–IANS

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