Indian stand-in skipper and star opener Rohit Sharma said the India squad wanted to test themselves and bring the team together after they faced the humiliating loss in Hamilton. Sharma also praised his side for performing brilliantly in the fifth and the final ODI which India won against Kiwis and clinch the series 4-1.
India’s batting collapse in the fourth ODI was an “aberration” as the Men-in-Blue have mostly delivered whenever put in a tough situation. India’s batting came a cropper in the Hamilton game as they were dismissed for their seventh lowest total of 92.
“The Hamilton loss, the way we lost was big. We need to get together as a team. I knew there was some moisture on the pitch. If the series was alive, we would have chased but we wanted to test ourselves today,” Rohit said after India beat the home side by 35 runs.
Rohit heaped praise on Rayudu and Shankar, saying their partnership was the turning point of the match.
“After we lost four wickets, all we needed was somebody to show application. Rayudu and Vijay Shankar did that. The partnership between them turned the game for us and the way Hardik and Kedar played in the end was magnificent. We showed a lot of character,” said Rohit who contribute just 2 runs.
He also lauded the efforts of the bowlers for producing crucial breakthroughs.
“The wicket got flat at the end, but at one point it looked an easy chase, but the bowling unit came together. Lot of people put their hands up and got us through,” he said.
“Wasn’t easy after losing four wickets at the start. Thought 250 was a very good score on that pitch. Bowlers got crucial breakthroughs at critical times. I couldn’t ask for more,” he added.