Team India skipper Rohit Sharma opened up on the batting order shuffle in the first ODI against West Indies on Thursday, July 27 at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados. He shared that the team management wanted to give a chance to the middle and lower-middle orders in the match.
Chasing 115 runs, the Indian batting order was shuffled as Ishan Kishan opened the batting along with Shubman Gill. Suryakumar Yadav batted at No. 3, while Hardik Pandya was promoted to bat at No. 4. Shardul Thakur and Ravindra Jadeja also got an opportunity to bat. Skipper Rohit Sharma played at No. 7, while Virat Kohli did not bat in the innings. India chased down the target in around 23 overs, at the loss of five wickets.
Rohit Sharma expressed that the batting order was shuffled to give chances to other players. He also accepted that they did not think they would lose five wickets chasing 115 runs. Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Rohit Sharma said,
“We wanted to give chances to the other guys. Didn’t think we would lose 5 wickets.”
“We will keep trying those things as and when we feel it. We had the commanding position and decided to give some of the guys a go. Whenever we get an opportunity, we will try to accommodate those guys,” he added.
Mukesh Kumar bowled brilliantly: Rohit Sharma
Pacer Mukesh Kumar made his ODI debut for Team India in the first match against West Indies at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados. He had an impressive debut, dismissing Alick Athanaze in the match. He finished the match with bowling figures of 1/22 in five overs. Rohit Sharma praised the debutant for his performance. He said,
“Mukesh has bowled brilliantly; he has pace. I haven’t seen much of him in domestic cricket, and it’s nice to see him bowl well. Our bowlers did stick to their plan.”
Team India won the first ODI by five wickets. Kuldeep Yadav won the Player of the Match award for taking 4/6 in three overs. The second ODI will take place on Saturday, July 29 at Kensington Oval, Bridgetown in Barbados.
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