India began the four-match Test series on a high note as they thrashed Australia by an innings and 132 runs in Nagpur on Saturday. India skipper Rohit Sharma expressed his happiness and the strategy that the men in blue applied at Nagpur.
Rohit smashed a century to guide his team to a massive total against the Kangaroos. He played a Test after a long time and expressed how he felt after returning back to the team.
"I was unfortunate that I had to miss a few Tests because of injuries but I'm happy to be back. Since I was appointed Test captain, I have played just two Tests. I was diagnosed with Covid-19 in England, missed South Africa, got a freak injury against Bangladesh, but was ready for this one," Rohit said.
Rohit spoke about their plan to score on the home soil especially on pitches like Nagpur that turn a lot.
"You need to have application and some sort of plan to score runs at the kind of pitches we are playing in India. I've grown up playing a lot in Mumbai on surfaces that turn a lot. You need to be slightly unorthodox and use your feet. You also need to put pressure on bowlers by doing something different. And that difference could be whatever suits you - using your feet, sweeping, reverse-sweeping. It was the first two overs from the seamers," he added.
Rohit also praised the spin department of Team India.
"After starting a game like that, you're in the ascendancy. Opposition is under pressure from there. We know we have quality in our spin department. But the seamers can be threatening as well on a pitch like that," Rohit explained.
Australia skipper Pat Cummins also gave his take on the first Test loss and the performance of his team
"The game moves pretty quickly here at times in India. They played very well. The spinners are always going to be hard work when it's spinning. Rohit played very well," Cummins said.
"The wicket spun (in the first innings) but wasn't unplayable. Should've scored 100 more runs. Starting here is tough but 3-4 of our guys got in. When you do get in, got to score big scores. Murphy was fantastic," he added.
The Australians came to India looking like a strong side and heading into the 1st Test match at Nagpur, they sure looked like they were up to something this time around. As it turns out though, they had no idea what they were getting themselves into. India spun Australia to an embarrassing defeat and bundled them up for just 91 runs in the 2nd innings.
India's dominance was on full display as they scalped 10 Australian wickets within a session, and that goes a long way in saying how poor Australia were in this Test. The caravan now moves to Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi, where the second Test match is set to be played, starting on February 17.
