After defeating Australia in the Group A match of the Super Eight stage of the ICC T20 World Cup on Monday and making it to the semi-finals, Indian captain Rohit Sharma said that during his stormy half-century, he just wanted to bat in the same style as he has been doing so far.
Rohit played a blazing innings of 92 runs in 41 balls with seven fours and eight sixes, helping India score their highest score of the current tournament of 205 runs for five wickets. He shared an 87-run partnership in just 38 balls for the second wicket with Rishabh Pant (15). Rohit, who was adjudged Player of the Match, said that he just wanted to bat in the same style as he has been doing so far.
Rohit said this about his batting
Rohit said after the match, 'When you play with an open mind and don't think about just one shot, you can score runs in all parts of the field. It was a good wicket and you want to prepare yourself to play shots. I have been trying to do this for the last few years and I am happy that it was possible today.'
He said, 'Half-centuries and centuries do not matter, I just wanted to bat in the same style as I have been doing. You want to score big. Yes, but at the same time you want the bowler to think where the next shot will come and I think I was able to do that today.'
Rohit spoke about batting amid strong winds
Referring to batting amid strong winds, Rohit said, 'I thought from the first over that strong winds are blowing. They changed their plan and bowled against the wind, so I felt that I would have to play shots on the offside as well. You also have to take care of the wind and understand that the bowlers are also smart and shots have to be played on all sides of the field.'
Chasing India's target of 206 runs, Australia could only score 181 runs for seven wickets despite a half-century from opener Travis Head (76 runs, 43 balls, nine fours, four sixes) and his partnership of 81 runs for the second wicket with captain Mitchell Marsh (37) and 41 runs for the third wicket with Glenn Maxwell (20). For India, Arshdeep took three wickets for 37 runs, while Kuldeep Yadav took two wickets for 24 runs. Axar Patel (one wicket for 21 runs) and Jasprit Bumrah (one wicket for 29 runs) also took one wicket each.
'Satisfying victory, we knew the threat'
Rohit said - This victory is satisfying. We know the threat brought by the team in front. As a team, we performed well, we kept doing the things we needed to do. As a team, we get good confidence. 200 is a good score, but anything can happen when you are playing here and the wind is a big factor. However, I think we used the conditions well.
Praising Kuldeep, Rohit said - We know what Kuldeep can do. We had to use him when needed. There were wickets favorable to fast bowlers in New York. He missed out on making a place, but we knew that he had to play a big role here.
'No different plan for the semi-finals'
Rohit said - We do not want to do anything different in the semi-finals. Want to play in the same way, as we have been doing in this tournament. Every player knows what his role is. Play freely and do not think too much about what will happen next. Do not think too much about the team in front. We have been doing this continuously, just need to continue it. There will be a good match against England in the semi-finals. Nothing will change for us as a team.
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