T20 World Cup 2021: "If India play their first six overs with this intent, then they are no match for the other teams" - Harbhajan Singh
Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh lauded India's performance in their comprehensive 8-wicket win over Scotland in the group stage encounter in Dubai. The victory keeps India alive in the tournament with their fate now rested on the result in the New Zealand vs Afghanistan contest on Sunday.
Yet another dominant performance by #TeamIndia to seal an emphatic win 💪
Good night from Dubai! 👋
#T20WorldCup #INDvSCO https://t.co/r1dzwobfnh
Harbhajan reserved praise for the two Indian openers, who put up 70 runs in the first 5 overs. It helped India topple Afghanistan and New Zealand in terms of the net-run rate. The former player was in awe of the strokeplay of both openers and added that India are unmatchable when they are in this kind of zone. While speaking on his YouTube channel, Harbhajan said:
"Batting was tremendous. KL Rahul was outstanding, each and every shot deserves praise and the six over square leg was just fantastic. So was Rohit Sharma. I have said this before as well, if India play their first six overs well, with this intent, then they are no match for the other teams."
KL Rahul scored an 18-ball fifty while Rohit Sharma played as the perfect ally during the chase. The duo carried things right from where they left it against Afghanistan to attack Scotland bowlers from the word go.
Toss was obviously very important: Harbhajan Singh
Harbhajan also shed light on the importance of the toss in Dubai. Teams have often rightly looked to chase at the venue given the arrival of dew in the second innings. The dew makes things difficult for the bowlers and allows for the ball to come better onto the bat. Harbhajan felt that irrespective of the presence or absence of the dew, India would have looked to chase to bolster their net run rate. Harbhajan added:
"Toss was obviously very important, we all know the importance behind this toss. Teams usually tend to chase in Dubai after winning the toss due to the due factor. At the moment, we are a bit trapped due to the net run rate situation so we anyway had to chase to bolster the rate."
FIFTY in 1⃣8⃣ balls! 🔥 ⚡️
What a show @klrahul11 has put up in Dubai tonight! 👏 👏
#TeamIndia #T20WorldCup #INDvSCO
Follow the match ▶️ bit.ly/IndvSco-T20WC https://t.co/Fjxv3mJG1U
Virat Kohli ended his string of three successive losses with the coin at the toss on the occasion of his 33rd birthday. He elected to bowl without any hesitation following which the bowlers set up the platform for a convincing victory.