Win against rivals in the campaign starter, dominating victory over Hong Kong next, the Asia Cup started as a delight for India. However, come top 4, the delight, wins, all have disappeared into thin air, as has the form of Indian players.
India’s bitter defeat against Sri Lanka has brought many decisions regarding the team in question. Team selection, batting positions of specific players, and individual performances, all are under scrutiny. Clearly, an almost exit from the Asian tournament, where India is supposed to be the champion isn’t sitting well with the fans, and rightly so.
However, the Indian skipper Rohit Sharma hasn’t landed in a panic fit just as yet. The captain appeared for the post-match presser on Tuesday’s defeat. As he faced questions, he cleared that the team’s potential to perform isn’t something to doubt. Sure Sharma has lost his cool many times on the field on his players’ mistakes. But he isn’t someone to lose his trust in them for it.
Rohit Sharma not bugged by just two losses
Rohit Sharma on the quality of the Indian team and challenges of different opponents. pic.twitter.com/rUEjd15VSs
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) September 7, 2022
“We need to find answers as a team, like where we are with five bowlers. We know now where we stand with this combination. No long-term worries, we have lost only two games back to back. Since the last World Cup, we haven’t lost too many games. These games will teach us. We wanted to put ourselves under pressure in the Asia Cup. We are still looking for answers,” Rohit said in the presser.
“I don’t think we are lagging behind anywhere (in multi-nation tournaments). The quality is there within the team, I think somewhere down the line, when there is a multi-nation tournament, pressure is more. In bilaterals, you play 3-5 matches against a single opponent, there you have the chance to read the mindset of the opposition. But when you play tournaments like World Cup, Asia Cup, the challenge is in playing against different teams,” he added.
Moreover, Rohit Sharma reminded that the Indian team isn’t unfamiliar to play in the semi-finals and finals of important championships. “We have talked about this in our dressing room, we have talked about how we can stay ahead of the game. Unfortunately, we did not go to the semifinals of the T20 World Cup last year, we have lost two matches here in Asia Cup. But it is a challenge for us, every player on our team knows the challenge. But if you look at our history in ICC tournaments, you can see that we have played semi-finals, final and we have also won the final in the past. I do not think, we need to think too much about it. Our work is to help players understand how to make better decisions under pressure situations,” he said.
Sharma insists on the absence of any “worries” in the team
Rohit Sharma: There is nothing to worry about despite two back to back losses in the Asia Cup #INDvsSL #Bhuvi #RohitSharma #AsiaCup2022 #CricketTwitter pic.twitter.com/nPpWyAx3Uy
— OneCricket (@OneCricketApp) September 6, 2022
When asked if the consecutive losses have worried the team about potential discrepancies, Rohit insisted on the absence of any worries. “There is no worry. If you lose two matches, it does not mean that you start worrying. In our dressing room, such talks don’t take place. We have played many matches after the World Cup and we have won so many, just because we have lost these two matches in the Asia Cup, I do not think there is a reason to worry. Experienced batters get out and experienced bowlers are taken for runs, this all is normal and it keeps happening,” said Sharma.
“I do not think we should start worrying. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been playing for so many years, he has won so many matches for us at the death. 1-2 bad games do not mean that we start judging him,” he added.
