India lost the first of the two-match Test series against South Africa by an innings and 32 runs on Thursday, dashing Rohit and Co’s hopes of conquering the ‘final frontier’ where no Indian team has won a series in the last 31 years.
While the Indian batsmen, with the exception of KL Rahul, struggled to get to grips with the bouncing and swinging conditions at the SuperSport Park Cricket Stadium in Centurion, the Indian bowlers failed to put enough pressure on the Proteas, allowing them to post a mammoth first innings total of over 400 runs.
However, India skipper Rohit Sharma was highly critical of the Indian bowling line-up for conceding too many runs in the first innings, while reminding the newcomers to the side to be grateful for the opportunity they have been given.
Speaking after the match, Rohit said (as quoted by PTI), “This was not a 400-run wicket and we gave too many runs. We sprayed the ball all around, but it happens. One can’t depend on one particular bowler (Bumrah), the other three pacers also needed to perform their roles, we could learn from how South Africa bowled,”
However, the Indian captain was also appreciative of the role played by Jasprit Bumrah who took 4 wickets in the almost 27 overs bowled at an economy of under 3 an over. Rohit said, “Bumrah bowled well and we all know his quality. All he wanted was a bit of support which he didn’t get. That happens. All three tried hard, bending their backs but didn’t happen the way we wanted to. But games like these teaches you a lot as to what you want to do as a bowling unit,”
Rohit also had some words of advice for the young Indian players who got the chance to perform on the big stage against South Africa, saying that they should be grateful and get the job done for the team. He said, “When you get an opportunity, you should be grateful and come out and do the job for the team. Obviously, it didn’t work out well for him (Prasidh Krishna) and playing your first game, we all would have been nervous, he would have been nervous as well.
“These things happen, the guy has game to excel but we will back him and has a great attitude about his game which holds us in good stead going forward.” the Indian skipper added.
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Published: 29 Dec 2023, 12:29 PM IST
