"Important to take 20 wickets to win a Test" - Rohit Sharma delighted after 4-1 series win vs England

Indian captain Rohit Sharma was satisfied with his side’s innings and 64-run win in the 5th and series-concluding Test against England at the HPCA stadium in Dharamshala.

Rohit praised his team for showing incredible character, especially those players who made their debuts in the series.

Rohit Sharma praises youngsters and the bowling unit

Rohit Sharma himself had a successful series, scoring 2 centuries and setting up great tactics to lure the English batters to give away their wickets cheaply. He stated that it was a Test match where everything fell correctly into place and that his players responded very well under pressure. He was also happy with the effort the youngsters made in the series and was specifically happy to see the bowling unit stand up for the task.

“When you win a Test like this, everything has to fall in place. At some stage people are gonna come and we know that. These guys are maybe short of experience, they have played a lot of cricket and I can stand here and see that these guys responded pretty well under pressure.”

“The credit goes to the entire team and it was pleasing to see. When you win a series like this, we talk about scoring runs and 100s but it is important to take 20 wickets to win a Test. The way bowlers took responsibility was pleasing to see,” Rohit Sharma told Harsha Bhogle after the match.

It will go down as a series that not just ensured India’s dominance on home soil remains intact but it also was a series that directed youngsters towards a positive space. The likes of Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, Akash Deep and Devdutt Padikkal. Every player except Patidar was able to impress with their performances in the absence of senior players like Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and Mohammed Shami.

Rohit Sharma is happy with Kuldeep Yadav’s batting more than bowling

Rohit Sharma then shed light upon the comeback Kuldeep Yadav scripted in the longest format. Before appearing in the 2nd Test at Vizag, Kuldeep’s last Test appearance had come in December 2022 against Bangladesh. The Chinaman was dealing with an injury and Rohit was appreciative of Kuldeep’s comeback from injury. But if there was something Rohit was even happier about then it was his batting.

“It was over a period of time that we had a conversation, he’s got a lot of potential and when the chips were down in the 1st innings, he bowled really well and after his injury he came back and worked at NCA and he is putting a lot of effort and the most pleasing thing was his batting.” – Rohit added.

Rohit believes Yashasvi Jaiswal has a long way to go

Lastly, Rohit Sharma spoke on the type of series Yashasvi Jaiswal had. The left-hand batter scored 712 runs at an average of 87 from 9 innings including 2 double centuries, 3 half-centuries, 68 fours, and 26 sixes. Rohit said that Jaiswal has a very long way to go and claimed that he is a very tough guy.

“He’s got a long way to go, amazing to be in this position. When a guy’s got talent like that who can put pressure on the bowlers from the word go, there will be lots of challenges going forward. He is a tough guy and loves the challenges, clearly superb series for him and likes to score big,” Rohit concluded.