"After the 1st game, everyone woke up"- Abhishek Sharma destroys his Indian teammates standing beside Riyan Parag

Riyan Parag was one of the many new players who got an opportunity to play in the series against Zimbabwe. India won the series 4-1 after their win in the final T20I by 42 runs.

India scored 162/7 in their 20 overs. Parag played a good hand of 22 and added a 65-run stand with his Rajasthan Royals skipper Sanju Samson. Samson scored his second T20I fifty and took India to a good score. Lower-order contributions from Sviman Dube (26) and Rinku Singh (11 off 9) helped India get to that score as well.

The bowlers then did a fantastic job as they bowled out Zimbabwe for 125. Mukesh Kumar took four wickets while Tushar Deshpande, Abhishek Sharma, and Washington Sundar took one. It was a comprehensive bowling performance in the end.

Speaking about the experience in the series, Riyan Parag said that he and Abhishek had talked about playing for India since their childhood, which turned into reality in Zimbabwe. he further said that they unpacked their Indian jersey together in the hotel room before their first match. Sharma ended the series with 124 runs in five games including his maiden T20I ton in just his second game. Parag on the other hand, scored a valiant 22 off 24 to get his national career started.

Opened Our Jerseys Together: Riyan Parag On Abhishek Sharma

"We opened our jerseys together. I went to his room, he opened it first and then I did. We played the 2018 WC together and next 6 years we did not play. Doing it with him was pretty special," Riyan Parag told the broadcaster after the match.

Parag further spoke about how India bounced back after the first T20I loss in Harare. India thrashed Zimbabwe by comfortable margins after the first loss. They won the second T20I by 100 runs, the third by 23 runs, the fourth by 10 wickets, and the fifth by 42 runs. Riyan Parag spoke about Shubman Gill's captaincy in the series as well and spoke about how he motivated them.

"After the 1st game, everyone woke up and we were clinical after that. Really proud of the boys and enjoyed it to the max. It has been fun, we have played age group together, under 16. He has been like a captain even when he was not captain. In the field he has been exceptional," concluded Parag.

This was an incredible performance by a relatively young Indian team with just two players above the age of 30. The way they played and dominated the hosts was incredible to watch. There have been many positives for India from this series.

The biggest of them all was the rise of Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal as an opening combination. Saka Karim, the former Indian wicket-keeper batsman said that the new management should continue with them as the openers for the Sri Lanka series.

"Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill's unbroken match-winning partnership, right and left-handed combination, which we have been repeatedly talking about. Two slots are vacant in front of you. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli won't be seen in T20Is now. For that, I feel these two players are ready," Saba Karim said.