“The 212-run partnership broke the backbone of New Zealand bowlers” – Danish Kaneria hails Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill
Danish Kaneria has heaped praise on India captain Rohit Sharma and his opening partner Shubman Gill for their double-century stand in the third ODI against New Zealand in Indore on Tuesday, January 25. The former Pakistan player reckons that a strong start helped Team India post a mammoth total of 385 in their allotted 50 overs.
Rohit (101) scored an ODI century after a gap of three years, his 30th in the format. Meanwhile, Gill (112) continued his purple patch for the Men in Blue, finishing with 360 runs in the three-match series.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Kaneria said:
“Rohit Sharma scored 101. He gained confidence from his fifty in his last innings. Shubman Gill is looking extraordinary. He has been consistently scoring runs, making every opportunity count. The 212-run partnership broke the backbone of New Zealand bowlers.”
The veteran pointed out that, unlike Pakistan, India are a stronger side as far as their batting is concerned. He said:
“They knew anything below 350 would be tough for the bowlers. NZ recently destroyed Pakistan’s batting, but Indian batting was far superior.”
As far as the match is concerned, Team India won the fixture by 90 runs. The visitors were bundled out for 285.
Another victory helped the Men in Blue complete a 3-0 whitewash against New Zealand to become the latest No.1 ranked ODI team. They previously secured a 3-0 clean sweep against Sri Lanka.
“That's something that we lack in our home series” – Danish Kaneria
Kaneria wants Pakistan to learn from India and dominate at home. He said:
“The grounds were jampacked throughout the series. The audience comes in large numbers because India are playing well. Why not support your team when your home team is winning series and completing whitewashes? That's something that we lack in our home series.”
The statement comes as Babar Azam and Co. failed to secure a victory in the last five Tests against England and New Zealand. The Men in Green also lost the ODI series 1-2 against the Blackcaps.