In my mind India have already won the England series 2-1, says Rohit Sharma
According to Rohit Sharma, India have already won the Test series 2-1 against England, after the last the fifth and final Test in Manchester was called off hours before its start. The abandonment came following a Covid-19 outbreak in the Indian camp, with four staff members being tested positive.
India won the fourth Test at The Oval and went up 2-1 in the five-match Test series. But, the fifth and the final match of the Test series was called off after a Covid-19 scare hit the Indian camp. The fifth Test in Manchester was abandoned hours before the toss, after Team India's assistant physiotherapist Yogesh Parmar tested positive on eve of the game. Earlier India head coach Ravi Shastri along with other coaching staff members Bharat Arun, R Sridhar, and Nitin Patel were also sent to isolation after testing positive for the virus.
The England Cricket Board (ECB) and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), had discussions regarding the series decider after the Manchester Test was called off. The BCCI has agreed to play the fifth Test in July 2022. BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has said that it will be an extension of the five-match Test series and not a one-off game as England wants.
Rohit Sharma though, believes that India have already won the Test series by a 2-1 margin.
"I don''t know what''s happening with the last Test match. Whether we are playing a one-off Test (next year) but in my mind we have won the series 2-1," Rohit said during a press conference organised by Adidas.
Rohit had scored 368 runs from 8 innings at an average of 52.57 in the series. He scored 127 runs with 14 boundaries and a maximum to guide India to a huge total in the second innings at The Oval, which laid the foundation for a 157-run win.
While the opener was satisfied with his overall effort, he maintained that the best is yet to come.
"It''s not my best series. I feel my best is yet to come. I utilised the time before the World Test Championship final in Southampton (to fgure) what sort of technique and mindset is required. I was pretty happy and would like to take it further," Rohit added.