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After India survived a few anxious moments in the back end of their chase to pip Australia to a win by 2 wickets in the first of the five-match T20I series at Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Thursday, wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan weighed in on his rollicking partnership with interim skipper Suryakumar Yadav, saying that the communication was very good in the middle.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Kishan said the team produced a solid performance against the Aussies after being set a challenging target. He also lauded key contributions from his teammates that helped fashion the win against the 'Baggy Greens', adding that any game against the Aussies is a 'pressure game'. "I think it was a solid performance all around, especially from the bowlers as most of them were playing after a long time. Credit goes to everyone actually. It is always a pressure game when you are playing against Australia," Kishan said. The 25-year-old added that sometimes it's good to feature in games where the "opponent runs you close". Kishan also hailed Rinku Singh, who held his nerves and hit the winning boundary, saying the way he finished off the game showed his ability to stay calm in the face of extreme pressure. "Sometimes we need to play these games where you know when you are winning but the opponent runs you close. We get to learn a lot from these games. Rinku Singh has done very well in the IPL and in domestic cricket. Coming into this game against a world-class team like Australia and taking the team through to a win showed his ability. The shots he played were superb," Kishan added. Talking about the communication in the middle, the wicketkeeper-batter said he was in constant conversation with Suryakumar Yadav, discussing which bowlers to target. "We lost two early wickets and a partnership was important. Me and Surya are in the same team in IPL and I know how he plays and what shots he can execute. The communication was very good today in the middle. We were talking to each other about which bowler we needed to target and when we needed to rotate the strike," he added. After winning the toss and opting to field first, India sent back Matthew Short (13) early. However, a partnership of 130 runs between Josh Inglis (110 in 50 balls, with 11 fours and four sixes) and Steve Smith (52 off 41 balls, with eight fours) put the Aussies on course for a huge total. A cameo from Tim David (19*) took Australia to 208/3 of their 20 overs. Prasidh Krishna (1/50) and Ravi Bishnoi (1/54) took a wicket each for India. Chasing 209, India lost Ruturaj Gaikwad (0) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (21) early, reducing the 'Men in Blue' to 22/2. However, a 112-run stand between Kishan (58 in 39 balls, with two fours and five sixes) and Suryakumar Yadav (80 In 42 balls, with nine fours and four sixes) brought India back into the game. An able follow-up act by Rinku Singh (22* in 14 balls, with four boundaries) took India home despite the loss of some wickers in a flurry. Tanveer Sangha (2/47) was the pick of the bowlers for the Aussies while Matthew Short, Sean Abbott and Jason Behrendorff took a wicket each. (ANI)
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