Rohit Sharma has praised the maturity Rishabh Pant and Sarfaraz Khan showed against New Zealand in the first Test in Bengaluru, where their 177-run stand on the fourth day gave India hope of coming back despite a disastrous collapse in the first innings.
India were bundled out for 46 on the second day – their lowest Test score at home – and eventually lost the game by eight wickets. But because of Sarfaraz’s 150 and Pant’s 99, they were able to overturn the deficit of 356.
“When those two are batting, everyone’s on the edge of the seat because they like to play the game which has got them success,” Rohit told the broadcaster after the game. “You’ve seen it over time with Rishabh, the way he bats, obviously takes a bit of risk, but I thought it was a very mature innings. [He] defended good balls, left few balls as well, and then, again, backed himself to play those shots, and that is what he’s all about.
“Not to forget Sarfaraz. Sarfaraz, as well, playing in only his third or fourth Test match [fourth], to show that kind of maturity [was great], and [he was] very clear in his mind what kind of shots he wants to play. When you’re clear in your mind, you find yourself in good seat.”
Rohit was pleased with the determination India’s batters showed in their second innings, after New Zealand had posted 402.
“When you are 350 runs behind, you can’t think too much about it. All you got to do is try and bat the ball, as simple as that. That was the plan,” Rohit said. “We wanted to bat and see where the game goes. A couple of big partnerships there, really was exciting to watch, and put us back in the game. Like I said, when you’re 350 behind, it could have been easily [a situation] where we could have [been] bowled out before even getting 350. It was a great effort with the bat, something as a team we’re very proud of.”
India are trailing 0-1 in the three Test series but Rohit was confident of a comeback. Earlier this year, India lost the series opener to England in Hyderabad but fought back to finish win 4-1.
“There are guys who have been in this place before, where we’ve lost a game. We lost a game against England in the first Test, and we won four games after that. These things happen. It’s still two Test matches to go, and we know exactly what is required from each one of us. So, we’ll try and put our best game forward.”
The second Test of the series starts on October 24 in Pune.
