Video of Rohit Sharma 212 Runs : 28 Fours 6 Sixes : India vs South Africa

India vs South Africa, ICC WTC, October 19 2019

Match Result : India won by an innings and 202 runs

Player of the Match : Rohit Sharma

Virat Kohli: “Amazing. You guys have seen how we’re playing. Making things happen on pitches that don’t seem to offer too much, is something we’re very proud of. Even when we travelled away from home, we wanted to compete. Getting into the right kind of mindset is something these guys have worked really hard to get into.

Looking at the way these guys run into bowl, or even in the field, you can see that mindset. To be the best side in the world, you have to be multi-dimensional. Spin was always our strength, batting was never a problem for us. Ishant was the only experienced bowler for us.

We said we can play an extra bowler, and as batsmen we said we’ll get the job done. We’ve got runs in every Test match, our catching has been good too. (Goal) As I said, even without much experience, we travelled very well. We believe we can win anywhere.

As long as we keep working with honest intent, those things will follow. We’ve wanted to be the best team in Test cricket, and as long as we compete, things will work out well for us.”

Rohit Sharma, the man of the match, and the man of the series: “I’m thankful for the opportunity to the management for that opening slot. I can take a lot of positives about how to counter the new ball. The new ball is always a threat, and to be able to counter that will be a huge positive. I can take my game forward from that.

(Discipline at the start in white-ball cricket too) Yeah, it’s something that started in 2013 when I started opening in white-ball cricket. I realised you need some discipline at the start of the innings. It’s a template to my batting that allows me some success to my batting. I believe that I can do that for the team, and there are lots of aspects that you need to be mindful of when you’re opening.

The support of the coach and captain helps. (Double hundreds) Test cricket is a different game. Getting that big score will give confidence moving forward. I always believe that once you are in, it is only mistakes that can get you out.

We saw how hard it was to counter that new ball, and once you pass that stage, it’s all about how you want to pace yourself. I kept telling myself I want to be there, I want to get a big score and take my team to a good position.”

Faf du Plessis : “(After 431 in Vizag, what happened) That’s the frustating part of the tour. There were some really good signs, but it went the other way. Every Test, we made more mistakes. But we have to give credit to the Indian team. They were ruthless and they were better than us in every department – spin bowling, fast bowling, batting and even the fielding. They are a difficult team to overcome. (On Indian pace)

The mindset after 2015 was to prepare ourselves for really spinning tracks, but it’s been the opposite. Really sporting tracks – fantastic for fast bowlers and even for batsmen. There’s a lot to learn for us. (Pace on Indian pitches vs South Africa) I think it’s the skill of the bowlers.

They have a skiddy nature and they hit the right spots and the stumps at all times. Those are the things we talked about before we came here, but naturally the length in South Africa has to be a little shorter, and that takes time to adjust.

(On positives) It’s important that we have some young guys, and they’ll experience this in 3-4 years ago. It was important for us to take something back again. We have to learn to compete the next time again. This is the toughest tour on the circuit…11 series wins in a row bears testament to that.”

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