St. Kitts: India captain Rohit Sharma wants his team to continue playing more attacking cricket during the lead-up to this year’s T20 World Cup and is happy to wear the occasional loss due to the more aggressive style.
India batters failed meekly when they fell to just their fourth T20I loss of the year on Monday when defeated by an Obed McCoy-inspired West Indies by five wickets in St Kitts.
Rohit was one of McCoy’s six victims in the match, with the West Indies pacer running through India’s star-studded batting line-up to help bowl out the tourists in the final over for just 138.
But Rohit said there is no need to panic and the odd disappointing result will continue to fall India’s way while they continue to attack more with the bat.
“Really, really happy with how the bowlers bowled, but of course, there are certain things in our batting that we really need to look at,” Rohit said after the loss.
“But again, I will say that as well: we will continue to bat in that kind of fashion because we want to achieve something. Unless you try and do it, you will not achieve.
“So, I think, one odd result here and there, we shouldn’t panic. It’s just about giving those guys that clarity, and after one loss we are not trying to change anything. We will keep the same intensity and same intent with the bat.”
While their total was below par according to Rohit, India came within a whisker of defending the meagre score as West Indies still required 10 runs from the final over to claim the victory and level the series.
The India skipper decided to hand inexperienced pacer Avesh Khan the chance to be the hero when he handed the 25-year-old the ball for the final over, but the decision backfired when the right-armer overstepped on the first ball to give the home side a free hit and then conceded 10 runs from the ensuing two deliveries.
Rohit admitted he could have easily turned to experienced quick Bhuvneshwar Kumar for the final over, but said he will continue to provide fringe players the chance to show their wares during the lead-up to the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year.
“It’s all about giving the opportunity to these guys,” Rohit noted.
“We know what Bhuvneshwar Kumar brings to the table for us. He’s been doing it for so many years, but if you don’t give the opportunity to guys like Avesh, Arshdeep (Singh), and all those guys, you will never find out what it is like to bowl in the death overs for India. They’ve been doing it well for the IPL franchises, but this is a different ball game. These are the games you try and see how they respond to those (pressure) situations, but yeah it’s just one game.
“I don’t think we need to…or those guys need to panic about stuff. They have the skills, they have the talent; it’s just about backing it and giving them the right opportunity.”
