Indian captain Rohit Sharma showered praise on his bowlers for their "grit" in inspiring a resounding seven-wicket victory over arch-rivals Pakistan in the 12th match of the ICC World Cup 2023 at Narendra Modi Cricket Stadium on Saturday.
Rohit displayed his batting prowess with a stunning 86 off 63 balls, including six fours and six sixes, as India comfortably chased down the 192-run target with a whopping 117 balls to spare.
However, Rohit emphasised the pivotal role of the bowlers after Pakistan's batting lineup crumbled from 155-2 to a total of 191 all-out. He stated, "There is no doubt about it that the bowlers set up the game for us again today. It was a great effort."
He further added, "I don't think it was a 190-pitch. At one stage, we were looking at 270–280, but they came back and showed grit, and that says a lot about the guys."
Several bowlers made significant contributions, with Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Hardik Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, and Ravindra Jadeja all taking two wickets each.
With this victory, India now tops the 10-nation table with three wins in three games, while Pakistan is in fourth place with two wins and one defeat.
Rohit highlighted the team's ethos, stating, "We pride ourselves on whoever gets the ball doing the job for us. It can be someone's day. It can't be everybody's every day." He also emphasised the importance of his role as captain in reading the conditions and selecting the best bowler to trouble the batsmen.
Regarding the team's performance in the tournament, Rohit remained cautious, saying, "All in all, it is looking good, and I want to keep my fingers crossed. We don't want to get too excited or get too low; we want to stay balanced."
This victory marked India's eighth consecutive World Cup win over Pakistan, dating back to their first clash in the 1992 tournament.
Rohit explained, "This was an opposition we wanted to play against because we want to play quality opposition. Every opposition we come up against in this tournament is quality and can beat you on any particular day."
On the other side, Babar Azam, Pakistan's top scorer with 50 runs before their collapse, acknowledged that their middle order and opening bowlers underperformed. He expressed disappointment with their inability to finish well after a promising start.
Azam also noted that a better performance with the new ball might have made a significant difference and praised Rohit Sharma for his outstanding innings. Despite the loss, Pakistan aimed to take wickets and fight for a win, but India's strong start hindered their chances.
