HYDERABAD: In the third and final Twenty20 International against Australia, which the hosts won by six wickets with just one ball remaining to take the series 2-1, India captain Rohit Sharma is happy that the death overs bowlers "came to the party."
Sharma was also happy that the players in the batting and bowling departments were "brave" enough to seize the possibilities that presented themselves.
With the win, India also set a rare milestone by winning 21 T20 Internationals in a calendar year, which is the most ever for a team playing in men's T20 Internationals. With 20 T20I victories in 2021, Pakistan had held the record up to this point.
A score of 187 to win was by no means an easy target, but former captain Virat Kohli (63 off 48 balls) and Suryakumar Yadav (69 off 36) made it feasible with their century partnership, setting the stage for Hardik Pandya to finish the job with just one ball left.
Following the victory, Sharma noted that "there are a lot of areas (where India showed improvement), particularly, our death bowling coming to the party." The victory positions the team admirably for the white-ball series against South Africa, which will consist of three T20I and an equal number of ODIs in September and October.
"Hyderabad is a special place. With the India squad and the Deccan Chargers, we have many wonderful memories (IPL). The game was a wonderful event.. We intended to put on a spectacle, and we succeeded in doing so. The most encouraging aspect was that various people came forward with the ball and bat. You feel good as management when you are just observing everything that is going on. You may occasionally make a lot of mistakes. "Since this is T20 cricket, there are very few rooms for error. I thought we were bold for taking a chance. Sometimes it didn't work out, but we will use that as a lesson, he said.
Sharma also hoped that Harshal Patel and Jasprit Bumrah, who both made their series debuts after lengthy absences due to injuries, would find their rhythm in time for the upcoming matches against South Africa and the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia.
"Those two who arrived, Harshal and Bumrah, did so after a lengthy absence. It's difficult to bowl in Australia since you know their middle and lower order. I truly don't want to investigate that. They will take time because they are returning after a break. I'm hoping they can find their rhythm again," Sharma said.
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