Skipper Rohit Sharma has heaped praise on Team India for maintaining their sanctions amidst chaos following the win over England, which sealed a spot for them in the semifinals of the T20 World Cup. With the final against South Africa ahead, Sharma said the onus will be on sustaining this mindset.
It is a convincing 68-run victory over England, which deserted India into the final of the T20 World Cup against South Africa, the other unbeaten team in the tournament, at the Kensington Oval in Barbados.
The team takes the opportunity to break its recent drought of ICC tournaments by claiming its second T20 World Cup trophy in a row—it previously took the one in 2007 in South Africa.
"We've been very calm as a team. I know that we do understand the occasion. It's a big occasion. But for us, it's important that we keep calm because I thought staying calm and composed helps you make good decisions. And that is what will be required as well," Rohit said in his post-match reflections.
Asked about the semifinal win, Rohit termed it "very satisfying" after going down in the 2022 semifinal against England. He said it was a team performance and that they stuck to plans all through the game.
Rohit, who top-scored with an extremely well-compiled half-century, praised Suryakumar Yadav for his contribution of 47 runs. Critical from the Indian context, it certainly helped them get up to 171/7.
Added to this, the spinners Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Ravindra Jadeja combined to bowl with great effect, keeping England down to 103 and ensuring India's spot in its third successive ICC final, across formats.
Rohit has also kept the faith in Virat Kohli to come good following his low scores in the tournament of late. He warned of Kohli's experience and class in crucial matches.
Commenting on the competitive total at the semifinal, Rohit said, "At one stage we were feeling 140-150 and then as the game went on, we got some runs in the middle. Me and Surya got that partnership. Then we said, OK, another 20-25 runs more."
He concluded by emphasizing that the team did bat well at the end, knowing the conditions, to post a total of 170, which it did, and then congratulated the bowlers, who really worked their magic.
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