 | « Back to article | Print this article |
Good to play high-pressure match, challenged a lot of aspects of our game: Rohit
India captain Rohit Sharma on Tuesday said it was good to play a high-pressure game against Sri Lanka in the Super 4 stage of the Asia Cup as it "challenged a lot of aspects of our game" ahead of the World Cup.
Opting to bat, India managed a below-par 213 but the bowlers produced a splendid collective effort to carry their team to a 41-run win, and into the final of the continental tournament.
Rohit Sharma's fifty (53 off 48 balls) was the cornerstone of India's total as Lankan spinners Dunith Wellalage (5/40) and Charith Asalanka (4/18) bamboozled them.
But India, guided by Kuldeep Yadav's 4 for 43, bowled out Sri Lanka for 172.
India, who entered the final with four points, will either face Sri Lanka or Pakistan in the summit clash on Sunday.
"It was a good game. For us also to play a game like that under pressure. Challenged a lot of aspects of our game," Rohit said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
"We definitely want to play on pitches like these to see what we can achieve."
Rohit was full of praise for Hardik Pandya (1/14) and Kuldeep Yadav's (4/43) efforts with the ball.
"He's (Hardik) worked hard on his bowling over the last couple of years, and it's pleasing to see how he bowled that spell. Not an easy target to defend. Pitch got slightly better towards the end so we had to hold our nerve and bowl consistently," the skipper said.
"(Kuldeep) again for the past year or so bowling really well. He's worked hard on his rhythm and you can see the results in the last 15 ODIs he's played. He gives us a lot of options. So going forward it's a pretty good sign."