Mohali: Mahendra Singh Dhoni came in for some special praises for his new ball bowlers and Rohit Sharma, who came in to open India’s innings with Gautam Gambhir and played a pivotal role in India’s five-wicket win over England at PCA Stadium, Mohali that gave the hosts a 3-1 unassailable lead in the five-match ODI series.
Dhoni termed it to be a fantastic performance from the talented Mumbai batsman. "We all know Rohit is a gifted cricketer and it was a very good performance from him. He is a natural puller of the ball and once he got to his fifty, he converted it to a big one,” said Dhoni, adding that it was an overall good performance from his team.
“Overall it was a very good performance, more so with the new ball. We didn't let them get off to a quick start. It is new bowling attack and they will learn a lot with experience. Giving away 100 in the last 10 overs is acceptable as it's bound to happen with the new rules,” said the Indian skipper, adding that India have played well throughout the series as the conditions have not been typical sub-continental conditions, except Kochi. “So the series win has been a good achievement.”
Meanwhile England skipper Alastair Cook said that Rohit-Raina partnership really took things away from them. “Rohit and Raina played well. Their partnership was pivotal in India’s win. For us I don't think the conditions were really in our favour. The toss was crucial as the bowling became tough in the second innings due to due factor,” said Cook, taking out a few positives from the match.
“We put up a pretty good score on this wicket. We , managed to bat well Joe Root played pleasingly, he moved the ball around well."
Man-of-the-match, Suresh Raina said that he had asked Rohit to be positive. "I told Rohit to be positive and we had a tremendous partnership. Today, I got some chances and I stayed till the end. Rohit was playing really well. He showed some character in his innings. I remember Sachin told us that we have to be No. 1 in the fielding and today we fielded really well."
By Indian Sports News Network