How Rohit Sharma shut down Sri Lanka presenter after failing to win single ODI in three-match series

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India captain Rohit Sharma was unimpressed after Sri Lanka presenter Roshan Abeysinghe asked if his team lost the ODI series due to complacency after winning the T20 World Cup 2024.

Sri Lanka defeated India by 110 runs in the third ODI to register their first bilateral ODI series win against India in 27 years. The first match ended in a tie, while India lost by 32 runs in the second ODI.

During the post-match presentation ceremony, presenter Roshan Abeysinghe asked Rohit Sharma if India took things lightly against Sri Lanka, and if they were overly confident of their abilities. The 37-year-old Indian captain immediately dismissed the question by calling it a 'joke'.

“It's a joke. When you are playing for India there is never going to be complacency. As long as I'm here, that's not going to be the case,” Rohit Sharma, who looked visibly unimpressed with the question, said.

He soon pointed out that the host team played better cricket and therefore were on the winning side. “But you have to give credit to good cricket. Sri Lanka played better than us,” Rohit Sharma said.

Rohit Sharma, India's top-scorer in the series, admitted that his fell short in a lot of areas. Notably, India lost nine wickets to Sri Lanka spinners in each of the three matches, and the batting unit collapsed after a good opening stand. Also, Sri Lanka's middle-order managed to score handy runs in all the matches.

"All in all we didn't play good cricket through the series, and that is why we stand here. Throughout there were a few positives too. How the spinners bowled, some of the batters in the middle as well. We lost the series, and I feel there are a lot of areas we need to look at rather than the positives," Rohit Sharma said.

India's next ODI assignment is against England in February 2025. The matches will be played on February 6, 9 and 12 - in Nagpur, Cuttack and Ahmedabad respectively.