Rohit Sharma termed India’s 21-run loss to Australia in the deciding ODI of the three-match series in Chennai as a “collective failure”.
“I don’t think it was too many runs,” Rohit said of India’s failure to achieve the 270-run target. “The wicket was a little challenging towards the second half. I don’t think we batted well. Partnerships are crucial, and we failed to do that.”
The skipper found the batters’ failure on the slow turners “disappointing”.
“The mode of dismissals... you are born and brought up on these wickets. Sometimes you need to apply yourself, and give yourself a chance. It was important for one batter to carry on and take the game deep. All of us were trying our best but it just didn’t happen.”
Rohit, however, feels that the nine home ODIs since January has ensured plenty of positives for the team ahead of this year’s World Cup.
“The nine ODIs we have played since January, we can take a lot of positives from that,” he said. “(But) we need to understand where we need to improve.
“It’s a collective failure...we can take a lot of learnings from this series. In five months’ time, we’ll be playing in these conditions. Credit to the Australians. Both the spinners applied the pressure and so did their seamers,” Rohit, who was dismissed for a 17ball 30 on Wednesday, said.
Steve Smith looked satisfied with their performance after the reverses in the Test series. “It has been an enjoyable tour. The way we fought back after that (Delhi) Test match,” the stand-in Australian captain said.
“This wicket was different... It was just a really good performance. The spinners bowled beautifully. We continued taking wickets throughout... The way the tail stuck around and got us to 270 was remarkable... At one point, it looked like we weren’t getting to 220.”
Adam Zampa, who was the Man of the Match for his 4/45, didn’t wish to take all the credit. “I have had some success here. It is a tough place to come... always a huge challenge,” the leg spinner said.“Ashton Agar (2/41) changed the game. I don’t think I deserve this... Kudos to the guys who bowled before me as well.”
