Rohit Sharma ended the tour of England with two white-ball series victories and a few records to cherish as the captain of Team India. Rishabh Pant’s scintillating century at Old Trafford on Sunday allowed India their first ODI series on English soil after eight years. In pursuit of a 260-run target, the visitors suffered yet another top-order collapse but thanks to the duo of Pant and Hardik Pandya who lifted the innings and ensured India’s 5-wicket win.
With this remarkable victory, India became only the third team to defeat England at their home in an ODI series since 2015. In fact, Rohit became the first Indian captain to win both ODI and T20I series in England.
Back in 1999, India won their first-ever ODI series on English soil under the leadership of Mohammad Azharuddin. 15 years later, it was MS Dhoni who emulated the feat in 2014. Now, Rohit joins the elite list, becoming the third Indian captain to win an ODI bilateral series in England.
Overall, it’s been a victorious tour for India. Prior to the ODIs, India thumped England 2-1 in the T20Is. The back-to-back victories in Southampton and Birmingham made Rohit the only captain in the history of T20 cricket to have won 14 matches in a row. The series of successful outings began with the series against Bangladesh and continued against the likes of New Zealand, West Indies, Sri Lanka and England.
The Indian skipper was pleased with India’s win and also lauded the match-winning contribution of Hardik Pandya and Rishabh Pant.
“Very pleased. Came here, and wanted to achieve something as a group in white ball. We were here last time and were beaten, I remember that. Not an easy place to come and win games. It was a good pitch, but we do understand it’s not going to be easy if we lose wickets upfront,” Rohit said at the post-match presentation.
“Today we got to see that with Hardik and Rishabh. At no point, we felt they were panicking. They backed themselves and played cricketing shots. He’s a critical member for us (Chahal). Has got so much experience bowling in all formats. Pretty pleased with how he’s come back after the WC. Hardik as well,” he added.
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