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Indian skipper Rohit Sharma admitted his mistakes as the hosts lost to New Zealand at home for the first time in 36 years. After the eight-wicket defeat to Tom Latham-led side at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in the series opener, Rohit lauded Rishabh Pant and Sarfaraz Khan for helping India avoid a innings defeat and set a target of over 100 despite getting bowled out for 46. As Pant and Sarfaraz play aggressive cricket and find unorthodox ways of scoring runs, Rohit said that it keeps the players in the dressing room a little anxious.
“It was a good effort with the bat in the second innings. We didn't bat well in the first innings. So knew what was ahead and couple of guys stood out. When you are 350 behind you can't think too much about it, just got to see the ball and bat. Couple of partnerships were really exciting to watch. We could have easily been bowled out cheaply but proud of the effort. Everyone is on the edge of the seat when those two bat. Rishabh left a few balls and then played shots. Sarfaraz showed great maturity as well,” Rohit said in the post-match press conference.
Sarfaraz scored his maiden Test century and converted it into 150 whereas Pant missed his century by just one run. They shared a 177-run partnership for the fourth wicket to take India's second innings score past 400.
Rohit gives due credit for bowlers
Rohit admitted that he did not expect the pitch and conditions to challenge Indian batters as they did in the first innings. He also credited New Zealand bowlers for outclassing the batters.
“I said in my press conference that we knew it will be sticky early on but we didn't expect to be out for 46. New Zealand bowled well and we failed to respond to that,” he added.
Rohit vows to make a comeback
After the defeat, Rohit recalled dominating England after losing the Hyderabad Test.
"Games like these happen. We will move forward. We lost a game against England and won four games after that. We know exactly what is needed from each one of us,” the skipper added.
