Indian cricketer Mohammed Shami has analysed his team’s ODI series defeat against the Sri Lanka national cricket team. He admitted that the Indian batsmen looked disoriented when the bowlers came into the attack.
India suffered a crushing 110-run defeat against Sri Lanka in the third game of the series. The loss in the game also meant that the Rohit Sharma-led side suffered the first series defeat against the island nation since 1997 as they ended up losing the series 2-0.
One of the main reasons for the Indian team’s defeat was the poor batting performance. The Indian unit looked disoriented against the Sri Lankan team’s bowlers as wickets fell like a house of cards and the batsmen came under pressure and got stuck at the crease.
India captain Rohit Sharma scored a quickfire 35 at the over but once he returned to the hut, Indian wickets fell quickly. No batsman could get going against the bowlers as the 2024 T20 World Cup champions were bowled out for just 138 runs and lost the game by 110 runs.
Mohammed Shami admitted that after Rohit Sharma retired, the Indian batsmen were unable to play much. He said that the middle order was unable to move as Sri Lanka made the most of their conditions and won the game. In a video posted on his YouTube channel, he explained:
“When spin bowling came, they had to face a lot of problems. After Rohit Sharma, there was no significant batting performance. The batsmen kept coming and going. But by the end of the 16th over, they had scored 100 runs, but India had lost 7 wickets. In the face of this spin, India looked helpless.
“They looked worried. If we talk about the Indian batting, in the middle order, the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th batsman, nobody seemed to move. But in the ninth wicket, Washington Sundar struggled a bit. Sri Lanka tested their home conditions very well and played a good series, a home series,” Mohammed Shami said.
Focus on your game. Focus on your skill: Mohammed Shami’s message to Indian batsmen
Mohammed Shami congratulated Sri Lanka for the historic feat but noted that there will be a lot of questions to be answered within the Indian dressing room. He stated that when India lose against smaller teams, it becomes a big controversy. But Mohammed Shami asserted that the team needs to be focused on the future and come back stronger. He added:
“After Rohit Sharma…” – Mohammed Shami hits out at Indian batsmen for not playing well against bowlers
“And the series also broke the 27-year-old record. And against India, after 27 years, once again, they won the ODI series. Well done Sri Lanka. Congratulations. But if we talk about India, there will be a lot of questions. There will be a lot of topics to talk about.
“But what I say is that every series is about winning or losing. You focus on your game, you focus on your skills. There is always a series here and there. And when these series are played with small teams, then it becomes the most controversial series. Sometimes, they lose one-sidedly.
“Sometimes they create a lot of problems, but there is no problem. Sri Lanka played well. Well done, Sri Lanka. And to India, I would like to say one thing: focus on your game. Focus on your skills. Well done. Good luck,” he concluded.