With India reaching the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 final after beating defending champions England in the second semi-final by 68 runs at Guyana National Stadium on 27 June, the Indian skipper has a special message for his teammates.
Skipper Rohit Sharma and co. will now face Aiden Markram-led South Africa in the finals of the T20 World Cup 2024 on 29 June. They will travel north to Kensington Oval in Barbados. This will be the first time in T20 World Cup tournament history that two unbeaten teams will clash for the trophy.
Knowing the importance of the final, which can end an 11-year-old drought for an ICC trophy, Rohit wants his teammates to enter the ground with the same mindset they used at the event.
Addressing the press after defeating England at the semi-finals on 27 June, Rohit said, as quoted by ICC, “We've been very calm as a team. We do understand the occasion (in the final), but for us, it's important to keep calm and composed.”
"That helps us make good decisions. We need to make good decisions through the 40 overs. In this game too, we were steady and calm, and didn't panic too much. That has been the key for us. Yes, we do understand the occasion is important, but we need to play good cricket as well," he added.
After scoring 171/7, Indian bowlers packed up the England's innings at 103 in 16.4 overs. For India, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel took three wickets, while Ravindra Jadeja didn't let the batters score.
Speaking about spinners, Rohit said, "They are gun spinners. When conditions are like that in front of them, it's very difficult to play some shots. Yes, the pressure is on them to execute those balls, but they were very calm and knew what to bowl. We had a chat after the first innings: the plan was to hit the stumps as much as possible and keep the stumps in play and that's what they did."
