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WI vs IND | 'We Wanted To..'- Rohit Sharma Speaks After India's Emphatic Win in Barbados

image-lkli8mzyIshan Kishan opened the innings in place of Rohit Sharma [Image- Cricinfo]

Indian captain Rohit Sharma defended his and the management's decision to experiment with the batting order in the 1st ODI against the West Indies by stating that he wanted to give the ODI specialists game-time ahead of the World Cup.

India pushed the experiment button quite hard in Barbados as the likes of Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Hardik Pandya, and even Shardul Thakur batted ahead of Rohit and Virat Kohli.

Barring Ishan, who scored a half-century, none of the other batters could make the most of the opportunity as India kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Rohit eventually came out to bat at No.7, and scored the winning runs.

Speaking on his decision to bowl first, Sharma said that it was a collective call but also admitted that the pitch played opposite to what they were expecting.

"I never thought the pitch would play like that, it was the team's need to bowl first and have a score. The pitch had everything for the seamers and spinners, our guys did well to restrict them to that score. We wanted to give game time to the ODI guys who have come in, we will keep trying those things whenever possible," Sharma said.

"To restrict them to 115, we knew we could try these guys and give them a go. I don't think they'll get many chances like this. I made my debut for India and was batting at number 7, reminded me of those days. Mukesh was brilliant, he can swing the ball at good pace. Good to see what he can offer, haven't seen him much in domestic cricket. No matter the conditions, we need to bowl in the right areas to restrict them and I thought our bowlers did brilliantly. And then Ishan was good with the bat as well," he added.

Earlier, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav tore apart the Windies batting unit by claiming seven wickets between them. Debutant Mukesh Kumar also chipped in with a wicket. The second ODI will take place at the same venue on July 29.