Not thinking about T20 WC right now: Rahul
MOUNTMAUNGANUI: In-form India batsman KL Rahul said he is not thinking about the T20 World Cup yet but hopes to continue batting in the same vein, after India swept New Zealand 5-0 in the T20I series.
Rahul had scores of 56, 57*, 27, 39 and 45 in the five T20s and was adjudged the Man of the Series.
Rahul also captained Indian i n t heir f i elding session as stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma got injured while batting. Virat Kohli was rested for the final game here.
“It is great to be standing here winning 5-0. Very happy that my performances could result in victories for India. We were happy to come into this series with confidence and to keep executing our skills every game,” Rahul said after the game.
“We came up with answers from every situation and it is a great result for me and the side. I am batting really well now and I am happy to do the roles I am doing for my side.
“Not thinking too much about t h e T2 0 Worl d Cup a t t h e moment, but hopefully I can continue batting this way,” he added.
Rahul said the team is developing a winning habit.
“I think it is a winning habit that we have cultivated wherein we want to win every time we step onto the ground. As a team we keep believing in each other.
“It is unfortunate what happened with Rohit, but hopefully he’ll be fine in a couple of days,” he said on Rohit who suffered with cramps after scoring 60 as India batted first. They won the final game by seven runs.
Rahul said leading up to the World Cup in October, the team wants to try out few strategies.
“Leading up to the World Cup, there were a few strategies that we wanted to try out. It just keeps giving us more and more confidence to keep going around.
“We’ll relax a little bit over the next couple of days and enjoy the victory. But once we start with the next series, the process will remain the same. We want to win games of cricket every time we go out. The kind of cricket we are playing is fun to watch and we hope to keep repeating this.”
‘WHOLE SERIES HAS BEEN DISAPPOINTING’ After India secured a win in the fifth T20I, New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor said the whole series has been disappointing.
Taylor on Sunday became the first New Zealand male cricketer to play 100 T20I and scored 53 in the match. Despite his brilliant performance, India managed to thrash the hosts by seven runs in the fifth T20I.
“It was nice to contribute and play 100 games but I think the whole series has been disappointing by the way we put ourselves in good positions and fail to capitalize on that... You cannot give this Indian side an inch and we gave them a lot more than that and they took advantage of that,” Taylor said in the postmatch press conference.
With this victory, India whitewashed New Zealand in the fivematch T20I series.
New Zealand were in a comfortable position after the conclusion of 10 overs as they only needed 66 runs off 60 balls. However, the continuous fall of wicket prevented them from chasing the target of 164 runs set by the visitors.
Taylor termed Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah, who picked three wickets in the match, a ‘world-class bowler’.
“The game is normally comfortable when the scenario is 66 off 60 balls. But when you got a world-class bowler like Bumrah and he is an x-factor for them. They (Indian bowlers) put us under pressure and we gave away wickets at different times,” he said.
India will now take on New Zealand in a three-match ODI series, starting from February 5.