Head coach of the Indian cricket team, Ravi Shastri heaped praise on Rohit Sharma, saying it's good to have someone like the Asia Cup-winning captain in the leadership group of the team.
Shastri said he was impressed with the calming influence Rohit has had on the Men in Blue during their successful Asia Cup campaign in the United Arab Emirates.
The former captain's comments came after India beat Bangladesh in a thrilling final by three wickets at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Friday.
Shastri also opined that the biggest positives to have come out of Asia Cup 2018 were India's fielding in tough conditions and the spinners' ability to continuously strike in the middle overs.
"Yeah [brilliant to have another man to be able to captain the side], and in the top order. He [Rohit] looked always in control, even when the going got tough. He has got a calming influence in the middle," Shastri told Pietersen in an interview to Star Sports.
"Even today, I thought his bowling changes were very, very good. From 120 for 0 to keep the side down to 222 was a brilliant effort. In the last 30 overs, they gave about 100 runs."
Notably, Rohit has managed to keep his perfect record in tournament finals as captain intact. The Mumbai Indians skipper had won three Indian Premier League finals, a Champions League T20 final and the Nidahas Trophy tri-series final earlier this year before lifting the Asia Cup title on Friday.
People thought India would be flat after England tour: Shastri
Meanwhile, Shastri also lauded the team's efforts to maintain their intensity throughout the tournament, which came right after their long and draining tour of England.
While skipper Virat Kohli was rested, Rohit, who was axed from the Test series in the Old Blighty, took over the limited-overs team and helped them clinch continental glory.
"It's a different format but as I said, everyone knows how well we played in England. The scoreline (4-1) doesn't really reflect how the way the boys performed and fought," Shastri added.
"But this is a different format. You've got to take your mind off that and start again. So what I liked about this team is the intensity. People would have thought that after two and half months in England, the guys would be flat. They were reasonably flat in the first game against Hong Kong but really pulled up their socks after that.
"...if you ask me, the biggest plus is the fielding. Game after game, we saved about 25-30 runs. In these oppressive conditions, to see them throw themselves around on the field was heartening."
As Shastri pointed out, barring the first match against Hong Kong where the minnows tested India, the newly-crowned Asian champions played dominant cricket. They thrashed Pakistan twice, clinching two of their biggest wins over their arch-rivals in the tournament and dominated Bangladesh in the Super Four.
India decided to rest their key stars and handed MS Dhoni the captaincy against Afghanistan for Tuesday's dead-rubber, which ended in a tie.
In the tense final that went down to the last ball, the Men in Blue held their nerves better and fended off a spirited challenge from Mashrafe Mortaza's men.
