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'That was the turning point. Things would've been different if...': Rohit pin-points exact reason for loss in 1st T20I
Batting first, India piled a gigantic 208/6 on the board, however, Australia completed the chase with four balls to spare.
India and Australia engaged in a high scoring encounter in Mohali on Tuesday evening, which saw the latter complete their highest successful run-chase in T20Is. Batting first India piled a gigantic 208/6 on the board, however, Australia completed the chase with four balls to spare. Cameron Green led the proceedings with a 30-ball 60 and Matthew Wade gave the laid platform a perfect finish with an unbeaten 45 off just 21 balls.
Reflecting on the team's performance, India captain Rohit Sharma pointed the shortcomings in the bowling front as one of the key reason behind the outcome. He also highlighted the missed opportunities in the field, which contributed to the four-wicket loss.
"I don't think we bowled well. 200 is a good score to defend, and we didn't take our chances in the field. It was a great effort from our batters, but bowlers were not quite there," said Rohit at the post-match presentation ceremony.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who plundered runs in the 19th over at Asia Cup, met with a similar fate in the clash against Australia. The seamer conceded 52 runs in his four overs, and failed to pick a single wicket.
Umesh Yadav leaked 27 runs in the two overs he bowled and picked two wickets. Harshal Patel too was expensive as he conceded 49 runs in his four overs. While Yuzvendra Chahal conceded 42 with four deliveries still remaining in his quota.
Rohit was also vocal about the bowlers failing to defend 60 runs in the final four overs and the lack of an extra wicket, which the captain believes could have been the turning point.
"You can back yourself to defend 60 runs in the final 4 overs. We were not able to take that extra wicket. That was the turning point, if we would have taken another wicket, things would have been different.
"You can't score 200 everyday, you need to bat well. Hardik batted really well to get us there. We need to look at our bowling before the next game," said the India captain.
He also mentioned Mohali to be a happy hunting ground for the batters, adding one shouldn't feel secured despite posting a 200-plus target for the opposition.
"There are things we need to look at, but it was a great game for us to understand what went wrong. We know this is a high-scoring ground. You can't relax even if you get 200," he said.
With the outcome India are now trailing 0-1 in the three-match T20I series.
