(UTV | INDIA) – Rohit Sharma said he was particularly impressed with the way Ishan Kishan constructed his innings after the powerplay.
Lavishing praise on Ishan Kishan, India skipper Rohit Sharma on Thursday said he was particularly impressed with the way the young opener constructed his innings after the powerplay, something which has proved to be a problem for him in the past.
The 23-year-old from Jharkhand blasted a career-best 89 to set up India’s crushing 62-run win over Sri Lanka in the first T20I.
“I know Ishan for a long time now. We play for the same franchise (Mumbai Indians) in IPL. I know the mindset and ability Ishan has. It was about getting the rhythm back and it was very very pleasing to watch him bat today,” Rohit said during the post-match presentation.
That’s that from the 1st T20I.#TeamIndia win by 62 runs and go 1-0 up in the three-match series.
Scorecard – https://t.co/RpSRuIlfLe #INDvSL @Paytm pic.twitter.com/S2EoR9yesm
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 24, 2022
“He constructed the innings very well after six overs, which is usually a challenge for him because we know he likes to play his shots. It was not about coming and hitting the ball, it was also about finding the gaps.”
Though most of the things went India’s way, Rohit did address the fielding issues of the team and dropping easy catches.
“It is consistently happening. We are dropping easy catches which is not expected at this level.. Our fielding coach has some work to do. We want to improve on this and come Australia, we want to be a great fielding side.”
Sri Lankan skipper Dasun Shanaka admitted his team was outplayed in all three departments of the game.
“We were really poor in all three departments. They batted beautifully, read the game and conditions really well.”
Spin duo of Maheesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga were nursing injuries and Shanaka said they missed their services in the match.
“We are without two frontline spinners, Theekshana and Hasaranga. The replacements aren’t really experienced. Asalanka’s form was positive from this game. Chameera is bowling beautifully. He is our main strike bowler but the situations didn’t allow me to bowl him longer.”
Enjoyed tonight 👌 Great team effort 🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/SWXBj2GQec
— Ishan Kishan (@ishankishan51) February 24, 2022
Adjudged Player of the Match for his whirlwind 56-ball innings, Kishan said he tried to stay positive after being in subdued form in the preceding white-ball series against West Indies.
“I got to learn a lot from the last few matches. My intent wasn’t great but here I tried to keep it simple,” he said.
“I think pull is my favourite shot and I was actually waiting for the ball to play that shot. Bigger boundaries is good thing as we get lots of gaps. My plan was to middle the ball towards mid-wicket and it went my way.”
India will next play Sri Lanka on Saturday at Dharamsala.