The Indian stand-in skipper, Rohit Sharma showered praises on his bowlers for taking up “responsibility” when the India team needed the most during the third and the final T20I against Bangladesh in Nagpur on Sunday. Having lost the series opener in Delhi before winning the second T20I in Rajkot, India outplayed Bangladesh by 30 runs to clinch the T20I series 2-1 at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium.
Deepak Chahar was the pick of the bowlers for India as he recorded impressive figures of 6/7 to bowl out Bangladesh for 144 in their chase of 175. Shivam Dube also went on to pick three wickets, while Yuzvendra Chahal joined the party with a single wicket to his
During the post-match presentation, the Indian stand-in skipper, Rohit said, “It were the bowlers who won us the game. I know how tough it was in the middle considering the dew factor. At one stage it was looking easy for them when they needed 70-odd of 8 overs; things were looking tough for us.”
WATCH – Shivam Dube Gets Two-in-two In Nagpur
After being asked to bat, the Indian youngsters, half-centuries by KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer helped the team to post a competitive total of 174/5 despite a poor start. On the other hand, Bangladesh looked well on course for victory when they started their chase. Mohammad Naim was the highest run-scorer with 81 runs off 48 balls, including 10 boundaries and two sixes.
Rohit, who was leading the T20I side in the absence of Virat Kohli, admitted that his team was under tremendous pressure when the partnership between Naim and Mohammad Mithun was going on.
WATCH – Shreyas Iyer Smashes Afif Hossain For A Hat-trick Of Sixes
Sharma explained, “It was a great comeback from us. The boys took responsibility and raised their hands up. I just reminded them this (pointing towards the jersey) is what we are playing for. I can understand when wickets are not falling, it’s hard to pick up. I just had to remind what team they’re playing for, credit to the bowlers.”
Rohit was dismissed for just two runs, in the second over of the match, and he praised Iyer and Rahul, for their crucial contributions of 62 and 52 runs respectively. He said that the team management expects the individuals to take responsibility. According to Rohit, the team is looking “to find the right balance” before the T20 World Cup.
The Indian stand-in skipper explained, “Until we get close to the World Cup, we got to find the right balance. There are a few guys missing, but they’ll come back. “Keeping everything in mind, we have few games in mind before we get into that flight to Australia. If we keep performing like we did today, it’s going to be a big headache for Virat and the selectors.”
India will next take on Bangladesh in a two-match Test series, starting in Indore on Thursday.
