IND v AUS 2020: Outstanding effort to win two in a row without Rohit and Bumrah, says Virat Kohli
Indian skipper Virat Kohli heaped praise on the combined efforts of his team after their thrilling 6-wicket win over Australia in the 2nd T20I at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
He pointed out that the Men in Blue won two games on the trot without two of their best limited-overs players - Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah.
When asked about India's 2-0 T20I series win over the Aussies in the post-match presentation, Virat Kohli said:
"We've played really well as a team in T20 cricket. The fact that we don't have Rohit and Bumrah, two of our established white-ball players, and then to win two in a row like this - it's an outstanding effort from the team. Something that makes me very proud as a captain - guys are putting their hands up."
The 32-year-old added that the recent edition of the Indian Premier League helped the Indian team formulate their plans to perfection, and lauded the efforts of T Natarajan. The left-armer has picked up 5 wickets in the 2 T20Is that he has played for the country.
"Everyone has played 14 games at least of T20 cricket. They know inside out what the plans are. Natarajan with the ball was outstanding today. Shardul bowled nicely as well. We just kept them down to a total that we thought was quite chaseable on a small boundary."
Virat Kohli heaps praise on complete team performance in 2nd T20I
Virat Kohli further added that it was a complete performance from his team, and praised the youngsters for stepping up to the plate when called upon. He had special mentions for Shikhar Dhawan, Hardik Pandya and Shreyas Iyer, all of whom had key roles to play in India's win.
"Hardik finishing off the game, Shikhar with a really good knock. The opening partnership was good. Shreyas for finishing it off with Hardik. There were contributions from the whole team, and we'll keep getting better as the younger guys who are coming in are taking their opportunities."
The final game of the 3-match T20I series will be played at the same venue - the SCG - on the 8th of December, after which India will take on the hosts in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.