Bowlers felt the pressure: Dhoni
First Published : 16 Mar 2012, 22:37
Last Modified : 16 Mar 2012, 23:28
Mumbai, Mar 16: On an emotional rollercoaster of a day for India fans, Sachin Tendulkar scored his much-awaited hundredth century at Dhaka against Bangladesh before India lost the game to the hosts in a tight finish. India now face off against Pakistan on Sunday in a crunch game.
In the post-match media interaction, India skipper MS Dhoni spoke about the disappointing loss, Tendulkar’s landmark and India’s bowling failure.
Excerpts:
On the match
They played better cricket throughout. We all knew that in the second half the wicket gets slightly better and they made the most of it. They got off to a good start and after that all the batsman capitalised [on it] and made sure that whoever got in spent some time at the wicket and went after the bowlers. I thought later on, in the last few overs, right from the start of the Powerplay [that is], our bowlers felt the pressure and the execution was not really there. We crumbled under a bit of pressure but some more runs on the board would have made some difference.
On whether he missed having wicket-taking bowlers in crunch situations
As far as talent is concerned, we have got the quality. It is just that under pressure you need to execute well and need to execute with consistency. Match after match you have to do it. These are the youngsters who will get in and they will learn more and more and at the end of the day, these are the people who will start performing for us. It’s not like we have not got the talent; it’s just that maybe today they felt the pressure bowling the last few overs, especially [because it was a] good track.
On the defeat
As I said, Bangladesh is one side that can play really well. [They have] nothing to lose when they come out there. Especially when there are 300-odd runs on the board, they just come out there and look to play their shots. We never take any side lightly. It is about the side that plays better cricket and I thought they were the side that used the conditions really well. Their reverse-swing bowling was really good. They bowled in good areas and once the wicket got slightly better, they made sure they got partnerships going and at the end they batted really well.
On Sachin Tendulkar’s hundredth ton
It is definitely a big day because we have been waiting for it for a long time. It is a day that we can’t really forget. He has had a long career – hundred hundreds; most of us can’t even think about it. It is a tremendous achievement and I think he will cherish it throughout his life.
On the pressure to win against Pakistan
I don’t know when the last time was that we played without pressure, especially when the opposition is Pakistan. I think this will be a good game – that is what we are expecting. We can’t really control the result but for us it will be about coming on the field, trying to give it our best and not repeating the mistakes that we committed in this game.
