Rohit Sharma Dismisses Complacency Claims Following ODI Series Defeat To Sri Lanka

India's captain, Rohit Sharma, expressed his displeasure when Sri Lankan presenter Roshan Abeysinghe questioned if India's loss in the ODI series was due to complacency after their T20 World Cup 2024 victory.

Sri Lanka secured a 110-run win in the third ODI, marking their first bilateral ODI series victory against India in 27 years. The series began with a tie in the first match and a 32-run defeat for India in the second ODI.

During the post-match presentation, Abeysinghe asked Sharma if India underestimated Sri Lanka and were overly confident. Sharma quickly dismissed the question as absurd. "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," he stated firmly.

Sharma acknowledged that Sri Lanka outperformed India throughout the series. "But you have to give credit to good cricket. Sri Lanka played better than us," he admitted.

Sharma, who was India's top scorer in the series, conceded that his team fell short in several areas. Notably, India's batting lineup struggled against Sri Lanka's spinners, losing nine wickets to them in each match. Additionally, India's middle-order failed to capitalize on good starts.

"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," Sharma reflected.

Upcoming Series Against England

India's next ODI challenge will be against England in February 2025. The matches are scheduled for February 6th, 9th, and 12th in Nagpur, Cuttack, and Ahmedabad respectively.

The Indian captain emphasised that complacency was never an issue for his team while playing for their country. He stressed that they always strive to perform at their best.