Perth, Oct 19 (UNI) India captain Shubman Gill acknowledged that losing three wickets in the powerplay put his team on the back foot, forcing them into a catch-up game against Australia in a rain-affected first ODI at Perth Stadium.
The early setbacks meant that India had to constantly play under pressure, adjusting their batting strategy to stabilise the innings and make the total competitive.
Gill reflected on the team’s performance, saying, “There are a lot of learnings from this game and many positives as well. We were defending 130 and took the game pretty deep. We were very satisfied with that. It’s always a challenge to recover from such a start, but the team showed resilience and fought hard until the very end.”
He also expressed gratitude to the fans, noting, “We are very fortunate. The fans turned up in huge numbers and hopefully they’ll be able to cheer us on at Adelaide as well. Their support gives the players an extra boost, especially in challenging conditions.”
India lost the ODI opener by seven wickets.
Australia’s Mitchell Marsh, who was named Player of the Match, praised both the team and spectators for their support during the unpredictable weather. “The weather played its part today. Big thanks to all the fans that stuck around. I know these days can be really frustrating, but it’s nice to get a win. It’s always nice to win at home. I love playing for Australia,” he said.
On the challenges of the run-chase, Marsh added, “It was swinging around a little bit. We knew that was going to be the case for both teams, so it was a little challenge to get through there. Proud of the way our young guys came out and took the game on and got us over.”
“Josh Philippe came out and made it look very easy, didn’t he? It’s fun to get these young guys coming in. They just need to have fun and enjoy it. We don’t get to play in front of big crowds all the time, so I told them to really enjoy it,” he added.
