IND vs SL: “Literally Got Us Back In The Game” – Rohit Sharma Hails Kuldeep Yadav After Victory In Kolkata ODI

India National Cricket Team, under the leadership of Rohit Sharma, defeated the Dasun Shanaka-led Sri Lanka National Cricket Team in the second ODI of the three-match series by 4 wickets to clinch the series at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday, January 12.

Losing the toss and bowling first, the Indian bowling unit did a fantastic job in the match. Mohammed Siraj, who has been highly impressive in the powerplay in ODIs for quite some time, dismissed Avishka Fernando early on in the innings.

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As debutant Nuwanidu Fernando and Kusal Mendis were leading Sri Lanka to a recovery, Rohit Sharma introduced spin and both the left-arm spinners – Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel – performed brilliantly. Kuldeep picked up three wickets in his 10 overs and Axar Patel picked up one wicket in his 5 overs while giving away runs at an economy of 3.20.

Umran Malik, who has become a good wicket-taking option for India in the middle overs, bagged two wickets and Mohammed Siraj dismissed the last two batters to bundle out Sri Lanka for 215.

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Chasing the target, India lost the wickets of Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer inside 15 overs. However, KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya stitched together 75 runs in 119 balls that shifted the momentum back towards India.

In the end, KL Rahul remained unbeaten and steered India to a victory. He scored 64* runs off 103 balls, including 6 fours. This was the 95th win for India against Sri Lanka and now they have equalled Australia for most wins against a single opponent in ODIs.

KL has been batting at five for a long period of time now and it gives us the depth – Rohit Sharma

At the post-match presentation ceremony, Rohit Sharma said that KL Rahul batting at No.5 in ODIs gives India a much-needed depth, which allows the top-order to play freely. He said:

“It was a close game but games like these teach you a lot. We had to build an innings under pressure. KL has been batting at five for a long period of time now and it gives us the depth. Gives you the confidence as well at the top of the order for us to go and bat freely. It was a good display of batsmanship.”

Rohit Sharma further talked about the idea of having a left-handed batter in the middle and said:

“It’ll be nice to have a left-hander, but I don’t believe too much into it. Ideally we would like to have a left-hander, but we know the quality of the right-handers who are out there in the middle. They can tackle situations when put under pressure.”

Rohit Sharma was further asked whether India will make changes to the playing XI for the dead rubber ODI against Sri Lanka. He replied:

“ We haven’t thought about it yet, once we get there we’ll have a look at the pitch and have a look at some of our guys. There are 3 ODIs coming up against New Zealand as well, so we need to keep the guys fresh. We’ve got a long season now and we need to keep everything in mind. If needed, we’ll make some changes.”

Rohit Sharma signed off by showering praise on the left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav for his brilliant performance with the ball. He said:

“For him (Kuldeep Yadav) to come back and play the game he played today, it was fantastic. Literally got us back in the game. They were batting run-a-ball and Kuldeep, as we’ve seen quite often, comes and gets the wicket. He’s quite confident as a bowler right now and it definitely augurs well with the team.”

Also Read: IND vs SL: Watch- Rohit Sharma, Rahul Dravid Shocked As Hardik Pandya Comes Up With Poor Fielding Effort

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