“Rohit Sharma’s Candid Reaction to India’s 2nd ODI Loss to Sri Lanka”

Indian skipper Rohit Sharma described the 32-run defeat against Sri Lanka in the second ODI as painful, stating that discussions would be held about the batting performance during the middle overs on Sunday. India’s fragility against spin was exposed as they were bowled out for 208 while chasing 241, largely due to Jeffrey Vandersay’s six-wicket haul.

“When you lose a game, everything hurts. It’s not just about those 10 overs (when India lost six wickets for 50 runs). You have to play consistent cricket, and we failed to do that. Little disappointed, but these things happen,” Rohit said during the post-match presentation. “We weren’t good enough. Don’t want to look too much into how we played. But there’ll be talks about our batting in the middle overs,” he added.

Rohit emphasized the need for Indian batters to quickly adapt to the pitch conditions. “You got to adapt to what’s in front of you. With left-right (combination of batsmen), we felt it’d be easier to rotate strike. But credit to Jeffrey, he got six wickets.”

Despite the setback, Rohit mentioned that there would be no change in his approach. “The reason I got 65 is because of the way I batted. When I am batting like that, there’s a lot of risks taken. If you don’t cross the line, you always feel disappointed. But I don’t want to compromise on my intent. We understand the nature of this surface; it gets really tough in the middle overs. You have to try to get as many as possible in the powerplay,” he added.

Sri Lankan skipper Charith Asalanka expressed satisfaction with their total of 240, considering the conditions. “I was happy with the score — 240 was good enough. As a captain, I like this kind of problem (plenty of spin options). It was an unbelievable spell by him (Vandersay).” However, Asalanka hoped to contribute with the bat in the next match. “I am mainly a batter, and I have to score runs. After that, I can bowl a few overs,” he said.

Player of the Match Vandersay acknowledged the pressure of replacing Wanindu Hasaranga, who was ruled out of the series due to a hamstring injury. “There was a lot of pressure coming into the side. I am coming out of a layoff. It is easier to take credit (for myself). But I want to give credit to the batters as well, who put 240 runs on the board.” The 34-year-old said he would keep pushing himself to be among the regular players. “Hasaranga is our No. 1 spinner. I got to understand the atmosphere of the team and team balance. I have to keep pushing myself.”

Vandersay mentioned that dismissing Rohit Sharma boosted his confidence. “There was assistance in the wicket; I was trying to hit the good areas. Once I got my first wicket (Rohit), that built up my confidence,” he said.