India suffered a heartbreaking 1-wicket defeat at the hands of Bangladesh in a low-scoring first ODI.
Asked to bat first, the Men in Blue were bundled out for a paltry 186 in 41.2 overs. KL Rahul was the lone fighter with the bat, scoring 73 off 70 balls.
In reply, the hosts were tottering at 136/9 in the 40th over. They were staring at a comprehensive defeat but Mehidy Hasan (38* off 39 balls) turned out to be a hero with the bat, sharing an unbeaten 51-run partnership for the last wicket with Mustafizur Rahman (10*) to take Bangladesh over the line with four overs to spare.
Speaking after the game, India skipper Rohit Sharma sounded unimpressed with India's batting performance.
"It was a very close game. We did very well to come back into the game. We did not bat well. We bowled pretty well and kept them under pressure till the end. They held their nerves in the backend. If you look back at how we bowled, of course the last few overs, we would have liked to get a wicket. We kept taking wickets all through," he stated at the post-match presentation ceremony.
According to Rohit, 40-odd runs more would have put India in a winning position and losing wickets in the middle overs didn’t help the visitors.
"It wasn't enough runs. Another 30-40 runs would have made a difference. With KL and Washy, we could have got there. Unfortunately, we lost wickets in the middle, and it is not easy to come back. The pitch was a bit challenging, the odd ball was turning," the Indian captain said.
"You have to understand how to play. There are no excuses, we are used to such types of conditions. We need to look at how to bat against their spinners in these conditions. The genes are there, these guys grew up playing in such conditions. It is all about handling pressure. Once you do, it gives you confidence. It is important to learn how to handle those pressure situations. Hopefully, we change things around in the next game," he further remarked.
The second game of the three-ODI series will be held at the same venue on Wednesday (December 7).
(India Today inputs)