Rohit Sharma asks his team to come out good in next two matches
BCCI
After a sub-par performance in the first ODI in Dharamsala today, Rohit Sharma rued the lack of runs as the main reason for the loss and asked his team to pull up their socks for the rest of the series. He also explained that he was not surprised by the way MS Dhoni batted with the tail-enders.
It wasn’t the kind of initiation to international captaincy that Rohit Sharma would have hoped for as Suranga Lakmal made the most of the opportunity on the seam-friendly conditions. The pacer finished with figures of 4/13 to play the lead role in Sri Lanka’s seven-wicket win that ended their 12-match ODI losing streak. However, Sharma, who made his captaincy debut in the match, termed it as a forgettable performance and an eye-opener for the home team.Â
"We were not up to the mark with the bat. 70-80 runs more and it would have been a different ball game. It is important to thrive in these conditions and come out good. It is an eye-opener for all of us," said Rohit at the post-match presentation ceremony.Â
The only saving grace for India was MS Dhoni, who gave some semblance of respectability to the total with a fighting knock of 65 runs despite batting for a major part with the lower-order. Rohit stated that Dhoni has been in that situation so many times to understand the situation better than anyone else.Â
"He knows what to do in these conditions. I was not surprised. Someone batting with him would have made a big difference. There was still something in the pitch when we were bowling, but 112 was not enough runs on the board."
With Kohli getting an extended break ahead of a full tour of South Africa in early 2018, the selectors elevated Sharma to fill Kohli's shoes as the skipper, acknowledging his growth as a consistent player since 2013. However, his debut turned out to be a disastrous one and understandably, Sharma was quite disappointed by that.
"Not such a great experience. Nobody likes to be on the losing side. We have to focus on the coming back in two games and come as hard as possible."Â
