India captain Rohit Sharma showered Jasprit Bumrah with praise after India battled to a six-run win over Group A rivals Pakistan at the T20 World Cup, labelling the pace bowler a ‘genius with the ball’.
India were dismissed for 119 inside 19 overs, with Pakistan seamers Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah impressing in challenging conditions at New York’s Nassau County International Cricket Stadium.
But Muhammad Rizwan’s removal for 31 at the hands of an inspired Bumrah proved the turning point for India and Pakistan fell short in pursuit of 18 runs from the final over.
The result leaves Babar Azam and Co on the brink of elimination from the tournament following the side’s shock super-over defeat to the United States in their previous contest.
Speaking to Sky Sports in the immediate aftermath of the match, Sharma admitted India’s total of 119 with the bat was ’15-20 runs short’ of the target they set prior to the innings.
‘We fell short with the bat, we were 15-20 runs short, and we spoke about the fact every run matters on a pitch like that, on a ground like this,’ the India skipper said.
‘We were looking at 140 but, nevertheless, I thought the bowlers came and did the job for us.’
Sharma added: ‘It was a good wicket to be honest, compared to the last two games that we played here and we thought 140 would be a good score to fight.
‘With the bowling line-up we have, you feel confident that the guys can do the job.
‘There’s that never-say-die attitude in the team. We were only 119 on the board and we wanted to make early inroads which we did.’
On the attitude shown by India’s players, Sharma went on: ‘That’s what is required when you play a tournament like this.
‘You need everyone to show up and we need contributions from everyone. It makes a huge difference. That’s exactly what happened.
‘The bowlers we have, with the ball in hand, wanted to make a contribution for the team.’
Bumrah, so often the spearhead of India’s attack, ended with match-winning figures of 3/14 and Sharma hopes the talismanic quick is able to continue with the same ‘mindset’ for the remainder of the tournament.
‘Look, he’s going from strength to strength. We’ve seen him over the years now and what he can do with the ball, we all know about it,’ Sharma said.
‘I’m not going to talk too much about him, we want him to be in that kind of mindset until the end of the World Cup.
‘But yeah, he’s a genius with the ball. We all know that.’
With Pakistan staring down the barrel of an early World Cup exit, Babar – who made just 13 in the Big Apple – conceded his team were ‘not up to the mark’.
‘In our mind, we wanted to play normally, utilise the first six overs in the batting and [if we had done that] we win,’ the Pakistan captain said.
B’ut one wicket down and we were not up to the mark in the first six overs.
‘We were targeting like 40 to 45 runs in the first six overs, but we did not capitalise properly and yes after the ten overs also we made the same mistake.’
For more stories like this, check our sport page.
Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on
Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
MORE : Pakistan captain Babar Azam reacts to shock USA defeat in T20 World Cup super over
MORE : Jack Sinner can edge Carlos Alcaraz in French Open thriller as new guard prepares to dominate tennis
MORE : Enzo Maresca must bring immediate success at Chelsea or risk becoming next Graham Potter
Share your story or advertise with us: Whatsapp: +2347068606071 Email: info@newspotng.com
