Ishwar Pandey the find of the tour but needs to work on pace: Rajput

* The main point of this tour to South Africa was to give our players an understanding and a taste of the conditions. When India picks its squad for the Test tour of South Africa later this year,this India A tour will come in handy in terms of experience for the fringe players. It was strong India A team playing in South Africa and I’m happy with everything we achieved. We did well in the one dayers. Shikhar Dhawan was especially outstanding,that 248 was one of the best limited overs innings I have ever witnessed.

Who do you think was the find of the tour?

* Ten of the players on this tour had hopped over from the Zimbabwe one-day series. But according to me,the find of this tour was not one of them. It was Ishwar Pandey. He is tall,well-built and can bowl without tiring all day. He has the accuracy but still needs some work on the pace aspect. If he manages to increase his bowling speed then he will be the bowler to watch-out for in coming years.

Were you surprised with the slow wickets on offer?

* We knew that the pitches will be slow because of the winter in South Africa and we have to adjust to it.

Do you think its’ high time Rohit Sharma gets a Test cap?

* He batted brilliantly but as did Raina. I feel their performances will give the selectors a few options before the Test side is chosen.

What was Duncan Fletcher’s role on this A tour?

* He was part of the selection process and it was his idea to rest key players and give a chance to Ambati Rayudu,Dinesh Karthik,Stuart Binny,to name a few. After all,this tournament was meant to test your bench.

You have been part of plenty of victorious India A tours? What next for you? Is a promotion on the cards?

* Whatever role I have been given I have tried to give my best. Be it India under-19,India A or others. Let’s see what happens.