Ranchi: India’s new T20I captain Rohit Sharma got off to a positive start in the new role with India sealing the series with a win in the second match of the three-match series against New Zealand in Ranchi. After Clinching the series Rohit lauded the application of his players under pressure situations and attributed the T20 series win over the Black caps to “team effort”.
“Great effort from entire unit, wasn’t the easiest of conditions but the way we applied ourselves was great,” Rohit said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
“Under pressure, we know their quality as a batting outfit. I kept telling the bowlers it’s just about one wicket; if we get that, we can put (on) the brakes,” he said.
WHAT. A. WIN! 👏 👏#TeamIndia secure a 7⃣-wicket victory in the 2nd T20I against New Zealand & take an unassailable lead in the series. 👍 👍 #INDvNZ @Paytm
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/9m3WflcL1Y pic.twitter.com/ttqjgFE6mP
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 19, 2021
India chased down the target with plenty of balls to spare thanks to fifties from openers duo Rohit and KL Rahul. Rohit also praised the spin duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel and also spoke highly about the bench strength of the side.
“We know the quality of our spinners and can always pull things back. The bench strength, these guys have been performing consistently, so there’s pressure on the guys on the field. Important for me to give them freedom and the external things will take care of themselves. It’s a young team, a lot haven’t played a lot of games,” the skipper added.
Rohit was full of praise for Harshal Patel, who returned with figures of 2 for 25 in the last 10 overs on his T20 debut for India.
“He’s (Harshal) has done it many times, playing first-class cricket for many years, he knows what he wants to execute and is a very skillful bowler.” Rohit concluded.
With the victory, the hosts sealed an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the 3-match series. The series will now move to Kolkata where the third and last T20I will be played. As a full T20 skipper Rohit may goes into the break, a 3-0 series win against of New Zealand in ‘City of Joy’, where he once scored an epic 264 in an ODI, will be like an icing on the cake to end the series on perfect note.
