Rohit’s availability for second Test will be known in day or two: KL Rahul

PTI, Dec 18, 2022, 1:26 PM IST

Image: Twitter/ANI

Injured Rohit Sharma’s availability for the second Test against Bangladesh starting December 22 in Mirpur will be known in a day or two, stand-in India captain KL Rahul said on Sunday.

Rohit, who led India in two ODIs in the preceding series, was ruled out of the first Test, which India won by 188 runs on Sunday under Rahul’s captaincy.

Rohit had gone back to India after hurting his left thumb while fielding in the second ODI against Bangladesh in Mirpur on December 7. Abhimanyu Easwaran has come in as his replacement.

“About Rohit, we may be able to know (his status) in the next day or two, even I am not aware of it,” Rahul said at the post-match press conference.

Rahul termed the first Test win against Bangladesh as a complete performance, saying the team did well in all departments and played as a unit.

“Everything stood out. We batted really well, bowled really well. In fielding also, we took most of the catches that came our way. That is the way you win Test matches. Only one or two people cannot win matches, this is for all formats,” he said.

“Kuldeep (Yadav), (Mohammed) Siraj bowled really well in the first innings (of Bangladesh) but others supported them well. In the second innings, Axar (Patel) bowled really well but Kuldeep and Ash (R Ashwin) kept the pressure on. Umesh (Yadav) and Siraj bowled some really good spells, kept it tight and beat the bat many times but were unlucky.

“Everybody did well and this was what we wanted to do as a team. The guys who performed well in particular also got support from others. Those who are supporting are also important.” Rahul said the culture of the team is about collective needs and not individuals.

“Whether you have played 50 Test matches or you are playing your first or second match, it is the same. They don’t matter,” he said.

He said bundling Bangladesh out for 150 in their first innings set up the match for India.

“That gave us a lot of time to try and win the match. Had Bangladesh got 350 in the first innings, the match could gone for a draw.

“In Test cricket, you are not going to get an easy win. We knew that and we have played enough Test cricket to understand that at times the opposition is going to play better and we need to respect that. We have to keep doing our job,” Rahul said.

“I am very proud that throughout the five days we showed commitment and intensity. There was a bit of worry coming into the Test about how the body would react and be able to manage on the path for so long and still maintain our focus and intensity but we did pretty well, winning the first game.” Rahul said wrist spinner Kuldeep was an asset for the team in pitches which doesn’t offer much assistance to bowlers. “There was not much (on the wicket) for the spinners and Ash (R Ashwin) also felt that but Kuldeep brought a different variety and that is why we played Kuldeep on a pitch like this.” He said the 1-2 ODI series defeat was a bit disappointing.

“We played some good cricket but could not capitalise on the big moments. That was a bit disappointing. It is a completely new format now, new individuals, fresh energy coming in and you tend to forget what happened in the past and you try and focus what we have to do,” Rahul said.

“Test cricket is something everyone in the dressing room is excited about playing. There is a positive energy how we look at playing Test cricket and want to win games of cricket. We know that it is challenging and that is the fun of Test cricket.”