Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled at crucial stage, we believe in him: Rohit Sharma
Feb 18, 2022
Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], February 18 : India white-ball skipper Rohit Sharma on Friday hailed Bhuvneshwar Kumar for delivering under pressure in the second T20I against West Indies.
Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant's quality knocks were backed up by a spirited bowling performance at the death by Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Harshal Patel as India defeated West Indies by eight runs in the second T20I. In the penultimate over, Bhuvneshwar conceded just four runs and it swung the match in the hosts' favour.
"You are always a bit scared when you are playing against these guys. In the end, it was a phenomenal finish. Right from the start, we knew it wouldn't be easy. But I am proud we executed our plans under pressure. It was very critical at that point when Bhuvneshwar bowled. That's where experience comes into play. Bhuvi has been doing it for many years and we believe in him a lot," Rohit told host broadcaster Star Sports at the post-match presentation.
"We were a little sloppy in the field, a little disappointed with that. We could have done better if we had taken those catches. We want to try and minimize those mistakes moving forward," he added.
Earlier, Kohli played a 52-run knock as India posted 186/5 against West Indies in the allotted twenty overs. Rishabh Pant (52*) and Venkatesh Iyer (33) also contributed with the bat as India posted a score of more than the 180-run mark. Pant and Iyer had formed a 76-run stand for the fifth wicket.
In the final six overs, India managed to add 76 more runs to their total, taking the score past the 180-run mark.
"The way Virat started he took the pressure off me as well. It was a very important innings. And great finish by Rishabh and Venky Iyer. To see that sort of maturity from Iyer is very pleasing. He looks confident and towards the end, he asked me if I wanted to give him an over," said Rohit.
With this win, India has gained an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series and the final T20I will now be played on Sunday at the Eden Gardens.
