It may not have been the start India wanted, but Shikhar Dhawan termed the 10-wicket loss against Australia in the first ODI a “bad day in office”.
“We played well against the West Indies where all the batsmen performed. As players, we don’t focus too much on things that are not happening. As a team, we need to back each other and don’t focus too much on a loss,” Dhawan said.
He felt that Rahul’s dismissal was the turning point.
“At the time KL got out, we had planned to accelerate. Those four wickets we lost, that’s where we lost the momentum. We were targeting 300 and with the loss of wickets, we ended up scoring less runs than what we need on that wicket. In bowling too, we could not take early wickets. They outplayed us,” said the India opener, heaping praise on pace ace Pat Cummins.
“He bowled a really good length to me. We [Rahul and I] handled the first 10-15 overs very well but when we lost four wickets quickly, that changed the game.”
Making a mark
Warner, playing an ODI after nearly six months, was happy to strike form. “For us, it was about coming over here and trying to make our mark from where we left off in the World Cup,” said Warner.
“It’s our first ODI this summer and it’s away. For us, it’s about trying to put on clinical performances each time we go out there. We have a great bunch of guys. We feed off each other.”
