After getting starts and frittering them away in recent games, Shikhar Dhawan finally hit form with a match-winning 92 in the third T20I against the West Indies here on Sunday. Skipper Rohit Sharma was pleased that his opening partner was back among the runs ahead of the big tour of Australia.
“I think it was very important they (Dhawan and Pant) got some runs and some form before the Australia tour. I think Shikhar was batting well in the limited-over games. He got starts, making 30s and 40s, but was not able to get big scores. So I am glad he got some form under his belt,” said Rohit.
About the 3-0 series win, the India skipper said: “When you win series like this, you are high on confidence. It will be different in Australia and I understand that, but the things we have been doing as a team, we just have to keep repeating. That is what the best teams do.”
Rohit added that the team ticked quite a few boxes, specially mentioning that fielding was one area where it did really well.
He also had words of appreciation for Krunal Pandya who made his debut during the series, saying that the side will benefit from fearless cricketers like him. “Krunal is a street-smart cricketer who is never afraid of any challenges. We saw how he finished the game with the bat in the first T20. He played shots that were not expected from someone who was making his debut.”
Be consistent
West Indies skipper Carlos Brathwaite said that, despite the 3-0 loss, the team had some positives to take from the series.
“We have a few match-winners in the side who can take the game away from the opposition, but what we need to do is to do it on a consistent basis and do enough as a team to be always in the hunt,” he said.
