Follow UsIndia skipper Rohit Sharma, in the wake of his side’s narrow defeat in the third T20I at Trent Bridge, asserted that he was proud of the fight shown by the team and lavished praise on Suryakumar Yadav, who struck a sensational ton in losing cause.
Chasing a mammoth target of 216, India were reduced to 31/3 in no time, but kept the chase alive till the very last over thanks to Suryakumar, who struck 117 off just 55 balls. The 31-year-old unleashed his full range of strokes as he struck 20 boundaries in total (14 fours and 6 sixes) but wasn’t able to take the side over the line due to insufficient support. No Indian batter barring Suryakumar passed 30 on the day.
Rohit described the right-hander as a ‘magnificent player to watch’.
“I thought it was a fantastic chase although we fell short. We are proud of the fight,” Rohit said post match.
“Surya was magnificent to watch. I have been watching him for a while now. Loves this format, has wide range of shots. He has grown from strength to strength since we got him into the squad.”
The Indian skipper, who suffered his first defeat as full-time skipper of the country, admitted that England, on the day, outbatted the visitors.
“They put us under pressure with their batting. Decent partnership put us on the back foot. You back yourself to get this score,” Rohit said.
India, since the T20 World Cup last year, have managed to find themselves unbeaten in six consecutive bilateral series in the shortest format, winning 15/18 matches. They played the first 16 matches without their full-strength XI, and only fielded the strongest available side in the second T20I of this series - a contest which they won by 49 runs - before opting to rest players again in the third game.
Rohit admitted that things have been going well for the side, but made it clear that he doesn’t want team India to be a side that sits on its laurels.
“We were clear in trying out guys if they can bowl 4 overs. We have things to work on as a group. Hope so. So far things are pretty good. We don't want to sit on laurels. We want to get better every game. Today was a great learning for us to come out and bowl. And to bat as well. Games like this will teach you,” Rohit said.
"We don't want to be a team that sits on laurels.”
Team India’s next assignment in the shortest format is a five-match T20I series against West Indies, starting July 29th.