Rohit Sharma on 65 vs SL: ‘Won’t Change Intent’: Leg-spinner Jeffrey Vandersay of Sri Lanka had a career-best effort on Sunday, taking six wickets to lead his team to a 32-run victory over India in the 2nd ODI, giving Sri Lanka a 1-0 series lead. On the spin-friendly surface at R. Premadasa Stadium, Sri Lanka amassed a competitive score of 240-9 after winning the toss and choosing to bat. India had a good start, cruising at 97 without loss, but in 42.2 overs they were all out for 208.
The captain of India, Rohit Sharma, was dismissed by Vandersay after he instigated a reverse-sweep that was wonderfully caught by a diving Pathum Nissanka. Rohit Sharma had been excellent in his half-century.
Vandersay proceeded to demolish India’s batting order, batting through the middle and upper orders to guarantee that the visitors would be bowled out with almost seven overs left.
During the post-game press conference, Rohit Sharma was questioned on his choice of shots and if he could have refrained from using an aggressive stroke. India’s batting collapse following Rohit’s removal ultimately resulted in the team’s narrow loss in Colombo. But Rohit insisted that playing the shot wouldn’t “change his intent,” defending his choice.
The way I batted is what allowed me to score 65 runs. I’m willing to take risks when I bat like that, and I have no fear of doing so. Regardless of your score—100, 50, or 0—you experience disappointment if you are unable to cross the finish line. That won’t alter my intentions, though. We lost the game because we didn’t play good cricket, Rohit stated.
“We know that playing consistent cricket is essential to winning games, and we didn’t do that tonight. It is disappointing, but such things do occur.
In addition, Rohit was questioned about Team India’s continued use of the left-right combination in the batting order, which gained notice following Gautam Gambhir’s entrance during the Twenty20 International series against Sri Lanka.
One must adjust to the circumstances that confront them. We thought that rotating strikes would be a little bit easier with left-right, but it didn’t work out. Kudos to Jeffrey for taking six wickets with his excellent bowling. Sri Lanka performed incredibly well in the cricket match, the Indian captain continued.
In the final ODI on August 7, India will play to tie the three-match series against Sri Lanka.
