Visibly relieved at a job well done, Ajinkya Rahane flashed one of his trademark reticent smiles after India put one over Bangladesh in the Asia Cup on Wednesday.
He was fulsome in praise for his captain, Virat Kohli.
“He played brilliantly today. I am very happy about the win today. This will give us a lot of momentum.”
Rahane said most of his conversation with Kohli was centred on batting time.
“We wanted to stay together for as long as possible and take things forward. Shot-selection was crucial because some balls kept low initially.”
Relaxed The 25-year-old felt he remained quite relaxed approaching the match.
“I was really disappointed at not being able to convert my start [into big scores] in New Zealand. But the hundred.
“I scored in my last innings in New Zealand gave me some confidence.
“I was just telling myself, ‘keep playing till the end and we’ll see what happens’. That really worked today.”
Earlier, Abdur Razzak couldn’t arrive at a reason for his team’s defeat.
“Our bowlers didn’t do that badly. Sometimes some special things happen in the middle and you lose. Virat did just that.
“They ran the singles well despite five fielders standing inside the circle.”
According to the left-arm spinner, a score of 300 appeared possible at one point. “The way Mushfiqur [Rahim] and Anamul [Haque] batted, we thought we would get to 300.
“I guess something went wrong down the order.”
Razzak also said the dew had made it difficult for Bangladesh’s spinners to grip the ball.
