Rohit Sharma Was Panicking During Virat Kohli's T20 WC Final Knock: 'Wasn't Comfortable'
Rohit Sharma has revealed that he was panicking in the dugout after India lost three quick wickets in the 2024 T20 World Cup final against South Africa in Barbados. Rohit, who was the captain back then, praised Virat Kohli and Axar Patel for stitching a crucial partnership that got them back into the contest. Kohli had a lean patch in the tournament, but he saved his best for the final, scoring 76 off 59 balls after Rohit, Rishabh Pant and Suryakumar Yadav were dismissed early into India's innings. Rohit admitted that Kohli regained his confidence after hitting three boundaries in the very first over of the match.
"If you hit three boundaries in the first over, then you've started well. That's what every cricketer wants. It relieves you a little bit. The experience of playing for India for so many years helps. You can control your emotions, control your thoughts, and stay in the moment. I'm sure he was thinking the same: 'Today is the day I need to be focused.' Not worrying about what happened before. And he played a brilliant innings. A fantastic partnership with Axar. After losing those three wickets up front, there were obviously a lot of nerves in the dressing room. I was panicking. I wasn't comfortable. I thought we'd let them into the game. Of course, in the back of my mind, I always believed our lower middle order, although it hadn't batted much during the tournament, had made an impact whenever given the opportunity," Rohit told Star Sports.
However, Rohit suggested that it was Axar's knock that change the course of the game, since Kohli was anchoring the innings.
"Not many people are talking about Axar's knock, but it was the game-changer. Scoring 47 off 31 at that stage was vital. And we needed one player to bat through the innings, and Virat did that brilliantly. Then we had Shivam, Axar, and Hardik, who came in and played their parts. I thought it was a very good total," he added.
Both Kohli and Rohit retired hours after India won the final. Ravindra Jadeja also announced his retirement a day after the final.
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