Colombo, Aug 8: After India’s ODI series ended in a 2-0 defeat to Sri Lanka, captain Rohit Sharma stated he never had intentions to throw his wicket away in the Power-play overs, saying his plan was to score as many runs as possible.

Rohit was India’s best batter in the series, smashing 157 runs, including two half centuries, at a strike rate of 141.44 across three matches, as he continued to play an attacking brand of Powerplay batting. But it didn’t yield in India winning the series, as the rest of the batters crumbled to the Sri Lankan spinners.

"I knew that the runs that will be scored during the Power-play will be critical. I knew that the wickets would get a little slow after that, the ball would turn a bit and even the field is spread out. When there are only two fielders outside the ring, we had to take our chances.”

“I took those chances whenever I felt that I could put the bowler under pressure. All the runs that you score over and above that, benefit the team to play the remaining 40 overs. My personal effort was to ensure that I scored as many runs as I could.”

“It was not as if I wanted to throw my wicket away after the Power-play. I wanted to continue the momentum and intent, but I unfortunately got dismissed while trying to play a few shots. My batting plan is pretty simple and straightforward," Rohit told reporters at the end of the tour.

India now have a break of 42 days from international cricket and will be back in action when they open their home season through the two-match Test series against Bangladesh in Chennai September 19.

The 2024/25 Indian domestic season begins September 5 via the Duleep Trophy, while some teams will kick-start their red-ball preparation via the Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament happening this month in Tamil Nadu.

“That's always been our goal to make sure that guys who are available go and play the Ranji Trophy. Our domestic cricket is the backbone of our international cricket. A lot of the guys who are representing now for the country have come up playing domestic cricket. So, our domestic cricket is so crucial for everyone.”

“We want to make sure that it stays like that, it stays competitive. We get players from our domestic circuit only, not so much from IPL. When you play Test cricket, when you choose players for Test cricket and ODI cricket, a lot of the discussion happens on who's doing well in Ranji Trophy, one-day format, Syed Mushtaq Ali and stuff like that.”

“IPL, of course, is one format where the challenges are different. Different teams, and different players are playing, and high-pressure situation again for a lot of guys. So it's a combination of both. To be honest, you have to look at IPL as it is also our cricket. So at the end of the day, whoever does well in all of these tournaments eventually will get picked up,” concluded Rohit.

(IANS)

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