India captain Shubman Gill dismissed the speculations around Rohit Sharma’s retirement from ODI cricket after the veteran Indian opener smashed 138 runs off 110 deliveries to become the first Indian to score an ODI century at Lord’s. Though India lost the series decider by 27 runs and conceded the three-ODI series 2-1, Gill admitted that the last few overs with the ball made the difference against England in the third ODI at Lord’s on Sunday.
When asked about media reports surrounding Rohit’s future in ODI cricket, Gill said all the talks are only in the media. “He (Rohit) has not told us anything about that it will be his last game,” Gill told reporters in the post-match press conference. “It is all out in media only.”
During the post-match presentation, captain Gill reflected on where India lost control of the game. “We were right in the game until the 45th over,” he said to the broadcasters. “I think in this match particularly, we didn’t bowl well, especially in the powerplay. I think we bowled too many off deliveries in the powerplay. And then the way they capitalised, both the openers after the powerplay, was just tremendous. They never really gave us a chance to come back in the game. And then in the death overs, I think they got, like I said, too far ahead from us.”
Gill went on to shower praises on Rohit and Virat Kohli for their contribution with the bat. “Many positives for us in the series, almost everyone getting runs and taking wickets,” the Indian captain said. “[On Rohit and Kohli’s contributions to Indian cricket] I mean, they have done really well over the years in different parts of the world. And very, very pleased with how, Rohit Bhai batted today, especially getting 140. And I think the wicket got a little bit slow in the end. It wasn’t easy to hit those runs. But I think the way he batted was really a treat to watch.”
Batting first England posted a mammoth total of 387/3 in their allotted 50 overs. Ben Duckett led the charge with a stunning 141 runs , while Jacob Bethell added 91 runs. Joe Root remained unbeaten on 74 and wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler’s added unbeaten 41 runs to help England finish strongly. For India, Prasidh Krishna picked up two wickets while Prince Yadav managed one.
Chasing a target of 388, India finished on 360/7 despite good knocks from Rohit Sharma (138), Gill (77) and Virat Kohli (74). Regular wickets in the middle overs slowed the chase and eventually India fell short by 27 runs.
When asked about the chase, Gill said: “Definitely, we thought if we had wickets in hand after the 40 overs, we’d be in the game. But at the same time, we didn’t want to be too much behind in the game.
“So I think after the powerplay, we started to accumulate runs on the board, get the run rate around six, six and a half. If we kept playing around six, six and a half, and then in the last 10, get 100, 110, you never know.”
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