To have staged a comeback after losing the first two matches and made it to the final is no mean achievement, believes Indian interim Captain, Virat Kohli. According to a report in Deccan Chronicle, he wreathed the Indian team in laurels for the strength of character that it had shown to shrug off the defeats in the early stage of the tournament to bounce back strongly.
Apart from sealing a place in the final, India's resounding win also gave the team a bonus point, by virtue of which it ascended to the apex of the points table. Kohli said that he was proud of the way his teammates had dishrged their duties in the must-win encounter.
"To bounce back like this and finish top of the table is a commendable effort. I am very proud of the team," a beaming Kohli said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
According to a report in Indian Express, Kohli is happy that the team showed a lot of character in making such a strong comeback in the tournament. "We have shown a lot of character. When three good teams are playing in the tournament, anything can happen. We were never bothered about the rain delays. Our performance showed what happens when one executes their plans properly."
Kohli, who was involved in a 49-run stand with opener, Rohit Sharma, said that he had not wanted to take any undue risks at that juncture in the match because he knew that having wickets in hand would work in India's favour when Duckworth-Lewis calculations would come into play. "When I and Rohit were playing, we just wanted to play ourselves in. It paid in the end, because we had wickets in hand, and it worked in the D/L calculations. Then the bowlers responded beautifully. Full credit to them."
Meanwhile according to Hindustan Times, man-of-the-match Bhuvneshwar Kumar, whose stunning spell which yielded four wickets, said that the wicket at Port of Spain was probably the best he had bowled on in the tournament. "It's important to hunt in pair and pitch the ball in right areas. It worked well for me and I am proud that I have performed well for my country," the UP seamer said.
On donning the role of an opener, Rohit said that he took it up as a challenge but believes that he still has a long way to go. "I took it up as a challenge. I know that I have a long way to go. I am really not bothered about whether I am getting a big score as long as I am contributing and working on my mistakes," Rohit said.
Rival captain Angelo Mathews conceded that it was a tough wicket to bat on. "It was a tough wicket to bat on," he said. "We bowled well, but when we batted the pitch had been under covers and had sweated more. We had nothing to lose and went for it."
Mathews said that it was very challenging to play three days in a row.
"It's mentally and physically draining to play three days in a row. We have played some good cricket to get to the final, hopefully we can beat India."