India vs Sri Lanka | Rohit Sharma praises bowling effort in testing conditions

India got off to a horrendous start in their second meeting against Sri Lanka in the Nidahas Trophy yesterday. Kusal Mendis, who has been enjoying a purple patch in his career with four half-centuries in five innings, was dominant yet again and led the charge for the hosts as they put on 94 runs in the first 10 overs. Another reason that led to the blizzard of runs that came India’s way was the fact that the game had to be delayed due to rain and the bowlers were finding it hard to grip the ball properly due to the wet outfield. 

But thanks to some great bowling, particularly by Washington Sundar (2/21) and Shardul Thakur (4/27) in the middle overs, India ensured that they restricted the hosts to just 152/9 in the allotted 19 overs. However, the Indian batsmen stumbled in the second innings and even the in-form man Shikhar Dhawan could contribute only 8 runs. In the recent past, questions have been asked of the Indian middle order, who are hardly tested, with the likes of Rohit, Dhawan, and Virat Kohli usually dominating teams. But that was not what happened yesterday as Manish Pandey and Dinesh Karthik made a mockery of a tricky target to guide India home with nine balls to spare.

While India are now in the driving seat as far as the tournament itself is concerned, with four points in three games, Rohit was adamant that the Men in Blue would not take their eyes off the prize. India will take on Bangladesh in the final league game and if they are able to drag out a win, they will secure a place in the final of the tri-series event.

"We aren't laid back at all, because all three teams are still alive in the tournament. They can all stand at four points. So we need to continue the momentum from hereon. The new guys have all taken their opportunities and made good use of it. So we don't need to go and change anything, we just need to play the way we have over the last two years," he said, with conviction.