IND vs ENG: Rohit Sharma Not Proud after T20I Win, Calls Players "Sloppy"
Updated - 08 Jul 2022, 05:07 PM
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Hardik Pandya’s match-winning effort against England in the inaugural T20I here on Thursday night earned praise from India captain Rohit Sharma, who noted that the all-rounder has been “amazing” during the entire season, beginning with the Indian Premier League (IPL).
India made a significant statement in white-ball cricket after their Test defeat to the Ben Stokes-led team, thrashing England by 50 runs in the opening match and demonstrating their resolve to compete in the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia later this year.
Great Performance From Ball One: Rohit Sharma
After being absent for the fifth Test’s rescheduled match, Sharma came back to captain the white-ball team. He struck a scorching 24 before players like Deepak Hooda (33), Suryakumar Yadav (39), and Hardik Pandya (51) took over to lead India to a mammoth 198 in 20 overs.
Pandya came back with the ball to dismiss the whole top order (4/33), preventing England from playing their natural game at home.
Sharma noted that his players were “sloppy” in the fielding but claimed it was an all-around performance from the first ball.
“Great performance from ball one. There was an intent shown from all the batters although the pitch was really good so you could back your shots. At no point did we feel we were getting ahead of ourselves, we played cricketing shots,” said Sharma.
Sometimes It Comes Off, Sometimes It Doesn’t: Rohit Sharma On Approach During Powerplay
Sharma said, “Back your basics” in those vital overs since making the most of the powerplay overs at the beginning of the innings has been the slogan of most sides.
“Looking at the larger picture, you try to back your basics. You got to make use of the six overs (with the bat). We’ve spoken about our approach — sometimes it comes off, sometimes it doesn’t.
That’s what this sport is, that’s what makes it challenging. It’s something we have spoken of, and all the players need to buy into it, not just 1-2 players.”
The talk of Indian cricket has been Pandya’s performance from Match 1 of the IPL 2022 season, and Sharma expressed his admiration for the all-bowling, rounder’s particularly the variations.
“(Hardik) The way he has prepared himself right from the IPL till now has been wonderful. What I was impressed was…was his bowling. He wanted to do a lot more of it, and he came bowled quick, used variations, got rewards too. Not to forget his batting too,” said Sharma.
Rohit Sharma Unhappy With Sloppy Fielding
The skipper said that the manner the club used the powerplay overs placed them on route for victory.
“(Powerplay bowling) It is something we took into consideration. It’s why we wanted to bat. At 8 ‘o clock, there’s nip in the air, we wanted to utilise that. You stop them in the powerplay, you have a lot of control on the game.”
Sharma, though, expressed his dissatisfaction with the team’s fielding performance.
“(Dropped catches) We were sloppy in the field. Those catches should’ve been taken. We want to set a high standard in that department. Not proud of it.”
