Rohit Sharma lauds team's character for strong come back after Dharamsala debacle
Rohit Sharma has been all praise for the youngsters and expressed his happiness for the team making a strong comeback putting the Dharamsala mortification behind. The stand-in skipper has also praised his fellow Mumbaikar, Shreyas Iyer, for his fearless approach to batting and positive intent.
On a track that traditionally offers vicious turn, the Sri Lankan batting fell like a pack of cards as the spinning duo of Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal made sure that India would not have to break a lot of sweat while chasing a total that would seal them the series. With a minuscule 215 runs to chase, Indian batsmen made had a field day in Vizag and secured the series victory with 17 overs to spare. The fightback after being 1-0 down in the series put Rohit in a happy place and he credits the team for showing character.
"It was a terrific comeback after the first game in Dharamsala. We showed plenty of character. This has been the hallmark of the team. Whenever we were defeated, we have always come back strong," Rohit said in the post-match presentation.Â
"I think the first game was a bit testing as a captain, because we didn't put enough runs on the board, and in the second game since we had runs I had the luxury to try out a few things, and today was perfect," Rohit explained.
Virat Kohli's temporary absence in the team opened up a spot at No. 3 and the team management decided to give Shreyas Iyer a go at that position. Like everyone, he struggled big time on his debut in Dharamsala and ended up making just 9 before he came up with back-to-back authoritative performances to put his case for a long run in the team.
"Whenever we were put into tough situations, we responded well. We played as a team and that's what counts at the end of the day. The batting of Shreyas Iyer was a big positive. He showed a lot of intent. The way he came and batted was brilliant. He batted fearlessly," Rohit said.
Sri Lanka
"Really disappointing for us. We played well in the first game, and it was a good chance to beat India in India, but we didn't execute the plans well in the last couple of games in both the departments," Perera said.
"We got a good start today, but the middle order didn't capitalise and so we couldn't put enough runs on the board. We already lost the ODI series and now we have to think about our future. We have to stay at present and forget the rest," the Lankan captain added.