IND vs WI: Rohit Sharma Reveals Reason Behind His And Virat Kohli's Demotion In Batting Order

After the victory over West Indies in the first ODI of the three-match series, India captain Rohit Sharma revealed the real reason behind demoting himself and Virat Kohli in the batting order.

Winning the toss and bowling first, India bundled out the home side for just 114 runs, thanks to Kuldeep Yadav’s exceptional 4-wicket haul and Ravindra Jadeja’s brilliant 3-wicket haul.

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Chasing the target, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were demoted in the batting order as Ishan Kishan opened the innings with Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav came out to bat at No.3.

Speaking during the post-match presentation ceremony, Rohit Sharma revealed that they wanted to provide some game time to certain players so the decision was made to demote him and Kohli in the batting order.

“We wanted to give game time to the ODI guys who have come in, we will keep trying those things whenever possible. To restrict them to 115, we knew we could try these guys and give them a go. I don’t think they’ll get many chances like this. I made my debut for India and was batting at number 7, reminded me of those days,” Rohit Sharma said.

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Mukesh Kumar was brilliant, he can swing the ball at a good pace – Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma further talked about the pitch and expressed his surprise over how the surface behaved. He said:

“I never thought the pitch would play like that, it was the team’s need to bowl first and have a score. The pitch had everything for the seamers and spinners, our guys did well to restrict them to that score.”

Rohit Sharma further heaped praise on debutant Mukesh Kumar and wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan, who hit a fine half-century. Rohit said:

“Mukesh was brilliant, he can swing the ball at a good pace. Good to see what he can offer, haven’t seen him much in domestic cricket. No matter the conditions, we need to bowl in the right areas to restrict them and I thought our bowlers did brilliantly. And then Ishan was good with the bat as well.”

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