'They're still playing very well': Mitchell Santner wary of Rohit Sharma-Virat Kohli threat

New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner knows the challenge his bowlers will face when they come up against India's experienced batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the five-match ODI series. The first ODI will be played at Eden Park in in Auckland on Wednesday. Rohit and Kohli are now focused only on the 50-over format, but Santner believes they remain dangerous opponents.Santner believes the two veterans are still in excellent form and said his team will need to bowl with discipline to contain them."They're getting on, but they're still playing very well. We saw it in the last series against the West Indies. I've seen it for a long time. I've seen Rohit in the IPL as well," Santner said at the pre-match press conference.The New Zealand captain said his team's bowling plans would depend on the conditions. His bowlers will have to be ready for pitches that offer help to fast bowlers as well as those that provide little assistance."When it's doing a bit, what does it look like? And then when it's flat, what does that look like as well?" he said.Rohit and Kohli expected to draw big crowdsSantner also spoke about the excitement surrounding Rohit and Kohli's presence in New Zealand. He expects the two Indian stars to attract large crowds during the ODI series."...I think it draws the crowds. We've had some really good crowds throughout the T20 series, and I expect they'll be the same with Rohit and Virat being here," he said.Santner revealed that New Zealand's bowling group had already discussed India's batting line-up and how to tackle the experienced Indian batters in home conditions."We've obviously sat down as a bowling group and discussed what that looks like, what their line-up looks like, how to operate in New Zealand, which I guess we know how to operate on these pitches," he said.He also explained how Rohit and Kohli could set the tone for India's innings with an attacking approach at the top of the order."Their role is to go pretty hard at the top and then set up a good score in the middle and let their power come in at the end," Santner said."Rohit, obviously, and Kohli have done it for a long time. Shubman's been outstanding as well for the last five years," he added.Santner says short-ball tactic may not work against RohitSantner also pointed out that Rohit has improved his ability to deal with short-pitched deliveries. He said bowlers can no longer expect to trouble the Indian opener by repeatedly bowling short."Teams have tried to go short at Rohit before, but he hits those for six now," he said.The New Zealand skipper believes his bowlers will need to maintain pressure over long periods and make adjustments according to the pitch and match situation."If the pitch offers more than the other night, can you do it for a long period of time and challenge the batter? And then if it's flat, how do we change? What does it look like? Subtle field changes," he said.Santner added that there were no major secrets to bowling in ODI cricket and that his team would have to focus on building pressure and taking wickets."But I think there's not too many secrets with ODI cricket with bowling. It's just building pressure and trying to get wickets through that way."Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.