In a rain-affected match on the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma’s scintillating batting propelled India to a convincing win.
Opting to bowl first, India let Nepal off the hook with three dropped catches, after which the Nepalese crew posted 230 in 48.1 overs of their first-ever match in opposition to India.India then chased down the revised goal of 145 with ease to progress to the ‘Super 4’ stage of the event.
“The wicket today was good, better than the last one during Pakistan. We could have been more disciplined. The three dropped catches helped them. They batted well…Glad nothing major happened (because of the dropped catches). It was good to see how we responded to it (the target),” stated Rathour within the post-match press convention.
On the upcoming conflict in opposition to Pakistan throughout the ‘Super 4’ stage, Rathour stated that the crew will attempt to do higher.
“We will try to play better and start better. Situations, conditions and bowling are different sometimes. Wickets do fall, but we recovered well to make 260 (in the rain-abandoned group match against Pakistan),” stated the batting coach.
When requested about Pakistan’s formidable tempo bowling trio that includes Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Naseem Shah, and the prevailing perception among the many public that India struggles in opposition to it, Rathour commented that whereas Pakistan undeniably possesses a powerful bowling assault, Indian batsmen are equally adept at offering robust performances.
“Pakistan has a good bowling attack. The new ball was doing well and the wicket offered help (in the group match). The rain broke the rhythm. All factors were there. It is not like we can’t play them. Our batters are also capable of playing (well) and getting a big start,” stated the coach.
Regarding the choice dilemma between wicketkeeper-batsmen Ishan Kishan and KL Rahul for the upcoming match, Rathour expressed that having to resolve between these two in-form gamers is a optimistic predicament to face.
“Ishan played really well. He has been doing really good. But KL has also done well for two years. It is a good problem to have. Team management will take the final decision,” stated Rathour.
On taking part in completely different combos, he added, “We have 15 players in the squad to test different combinations against different teams in different conditions. Shardul (Thakur) gives us batting depth…If we want to go all out with our fast bowlers, we have that as an option option. We have the option to play one more spinner as well as we have Axar Patel. It is good to have these options.”
(With company inputs)
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com