T20 World Cup 2022: "No doubt that Rohit Sharma is not batting well" - Harbhajan Singh hopes to see skipper in form in semi-final
Former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh hopes India's skipper Rohit Sharma will return to form in the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-final game against England. However, he reckons that multiple batters scoring runs is a positive sign for the Indian side.
Although the Indian captain scored a fifty against the Netherlands, he has struggled against higher-ranked teams. The right-handed batter started the tournament with a single-figure score against Pakistan, followed by 15 against South Africa and Zimbabwe, and two runs against Bangladesh.
Speaking to Aaj Tak after India's win over Zimbabwe in their final group game on Sunday, Harbhajan admitted that Rohit is not batting well. However, he heaped praise on Suryakumar Yadav for making batting look easy in tough conditions and releasing pressure on Virat Kohli.
He said:
"There is no doubt that Rohit Sharma is not batting well. Suryakumar Yadav is shining bright in the night sky in Australia and that is a positive sign for India. Yadav’s batting on tough pitches proves how great a player he is and I hope that he keeps repeating this."
"Virat Kohli is not shouldering the batting line-up anymore. There are other players in the order - KL Rahul has been scoring runs. While Rohit might not have hit big runs till now, one can only hope that he can come good in the last two matches."
Suryakumar Yadav is indeed in marvelous form and is currently the third-highest run-getter in the tournament. The right-handed batter struck a 25-ball 61 as India piled on 186 in 20 overs against Zimbabwe and registered a 79-run win.
"The Cup is just two steps away and you have to absorb pressure well to win the trophy" - Harbhajan Singh
The former off-spinner advised India to handle the situation and absorb the pressure well to lift the trophy as they have the team to do the job. Harbhajan, a part of the 2007 T20 World Cup as well as the 2011 ODI World Cup-winning squad, added:
"I only hope that the way Suryakumar Yadav and Arshdeep have shone, the others do it too. The Cup is just two steps away and you have to absorb pressure well to win the trophy. There will be a time when you have to absorb pressure and hit back later. The Cup is just two steps away and you have to absorb pressure well to win the trophy. I think that this is the right team that we have now and we should win the World Cup."
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The Men in Blue will face Jos Buttler's England in the second semi-final in Adelaide on Thursday (November 10).