T20 World Cup 2022: “He failed to do many things right” – Virender Sehwag slams Rohit Sharma’s captaincy against England

Former India player Virender Sehwag has slammed Rohit Sharma’s captaincy after India were hammered in their T20 World Cup semi-final against England by ten wickets in Adelaide on Thursday (November 10). Sehwag said that Rohit made some wrong calls under pressure in the knockout tie.

The veteran especially pointed out some flaws during the England innings as openers Jos Buttler and Alex Hales continued their carnage after a brisk start.

#TeamIndia put up a fight but it was England who won the match.

We had a solid run till the semifinal & enjoyed a solid support from the fans.

Scorecard ▶️ bit.ly/INDvENG-SF2-T2…

#T20WorldCup | #INDvENG https://t.co/5qPAiu8LcL

Speaking to Cricbuzz, Sehwag said:

“We say he is the world's best or IPL's best captain, but he failed to do many things right. As captain, when you bring such changes under pressure, it proves dangerous.”

He added:

“Today, we didn't see Rohit Sharma, the captain, that he used to be. He felt the pressure. He made few changes whether it's bringing Axar Patel in the powerplay, didn't bowl Mohammed Shami; Arsheep didn't bowl the second over, Bhuvi bowling the first over with the keeper at the stumps. So, he didn't do a lot of things right as a captain.”

It's worth mentioning that Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Shami bowled only one over during the powerplay. Interestingly, Axar Patel was introduced in the attack during the powerplay for a couple of overs.

Ravichandran Ashwin proved to be the most expensive bowler, conceding 27 runs off two overs, while Shami leaked 39 in his three. Pandya was hit for 34, while Bhuvneshwar gave away 25 runs. Patel completed his quota of four overs but gave away 30 runs, including the England innings' only boundary-less over.

Arshdeep Singh was the most economical bowler for India, with 0-15 in two overs.

“We lacked intent to play aggressive cricket and score runs” – Virender Sehwag after India's T20 World Cup exit

Sehwag also blasted India’s batting approach in the T20 World Cup knockout game. He said that the Men in Blue scored at a run-a-ball in the powerplay and didn’t increase their run rate in the first ten overs, which proved costly.

While KL Rahul once again failed to deliver against a big team, Rohit scored a rather sedate 27 off 28.

At the end of the powerplay, #TeamIndia are 38/1

Live - bit.ly/INDvENG-SF2-T2… #INDvENG #T20WorldCup https://t.co/SpKlJk5mp0

Team India’s innings progression in T20 World Cup semifinal

6 overs – 38/1

7-10 overs – 24/1

11-15 overs – 38/1

15-20 overs – 68/3

Meanwhile, England openers Jos Buttler and Alex Hales came out all guns blazing from the very first over. They scored nearly 60 in the powerplay and continued their carnage, hunting down the target with a whopping four overs to go.

“If you look at England's openers, they scored 13 runs off the first over, completed 60-odd runs in the powerplay, and continued a run rate of 10. They didn't stop despite who came into the bowl. We lacked the intent to play aggressive cricket and score runs.”

Englans will now face Pakistan in the T20 World Cup final in Melbourne on Sunday (November 13) in a repeat of the two teams' 50-over World Cup final at the same venue exactly three decades ago.