'We have to be brave, we weren't,' Rohit reveals the reason behind India's loss in the first Test
England defeated India by 28 runs in the first Test at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
New Delhi: The Rohit Sharma-led Indian cricket team suffered a 28-run loss to Ben Stokes' England in the first Test of the five-match series at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on January 28. The Indian skipper said they were not brave enough and that was the reason behind their loss despite leading by 190 runs in the first innings.
“It is difficult to determine where things went wrong. Since we had a lead of 190, we thought we were in full swing. Exceptional batting, one of the best I have seen in Indian conditions by a foreign batsman, Ollie Pope played a brilliant stroke. We bowled in the right places. The bowlers executed the plans very well, you have to tip your hat to Pope and say well played,” Rohit said at the post-match ceremony.
“Overall, we failed as a team. We didn't score well enough. I wanted them (Siraj and Bumrah) to take the match to the fifth day. The lower order fought very well there. You have to be brave enough, but I thought you weren't,” he added.
Debutant left-arm spinner Tom Hartley put aside a poor first-innings performance to post a sensational 7-62 as England recorded an unlikely and famous 28-run win over India in the Test Series opener.
Ollie Pope's magnificent 196 helped England, who had been 190 runs ahead, reach 420 runs in their second innings, setting India a target of 231. But Hartley had other plans, progressing through the Indian batting order to take his maiden seven-wicket haul in Test. cricket to bowl out the hosts for 202, hours after West Indian pacer Shamar Joseph took a seven-fer of his own to stop Australia from winning in Brisbane.
The victory gives England a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. This win is a testament to the visitors' successful Bazball approach in Indian conditions. It is undeniably one of England's biggest Test wins in the overseas circuit.
Short scores: England 246 and 420 in 102.1 overs (Ollie Pope 196; Ben Duckett 47; Jasprit Bumrah 4-41, Ravichandran Ashwin 3-126) defeated India 436 and 202 in 69.2 overs (Rohit Sharma 39, KS Bharat 28; Tom Hartley 7-62) with 28 runs