Virat Kohli smashed a century as India maintained their perfect record in their 50-overs home World Cup and cruised to their fourth consecutive victory of the tournament with a clinical seven-wicket win against Bangladesh on Thursday.
India's quest for a third World Cup title continues against New Zealand in Dharamsala on Sunday, with Bangladesh facing South Africa in Mumbai on Tuesday.
He (Hardik) pulled up a bit sore, nothing really major. We'll see howhe pulls up tomorrow morningand then plan on how to go forward. Everyone in the squad has gone through pressure, the crowd is coming in big numbers, the stands are pull, they haven't disappointed us, they've been brilliant and I'm sure they'll be louder and louder as we move on.
It was a good win, something we were looking forward to. We didn't start well, but the guys pulled it back in the middle-overs and at the back-end. Our fielding has been superb in all these matches, it's something that's in your control, you can put in your best effort. The bowlers were smart to understand what lengths to bowl. Jaddu was brilliant with the ball and the catch, but you can't beat a hundred. We're doing well as a group, a medal for all performances in the playing field and that's something which motivates everyone to do well.
India are always a very good side, a very capable team and they showed it today. All teams are good, but I think we didn't play our best cricket, hopefully, we'll play better in the future. He's going on well (on Shakib), should be fit for the next match.Tanzid batted well, so did our bowlers, the problem is we didn't finish well with the bat. Would have been a different ball-game had Litton stayed a bit longer, the batting group has to take up responsibility.
Sorry for stealing it (PoTM award) from Jaddu, I wanted to make a big contribution. I have had a few fifties in World Cups, haven't really converted. I just wanted to finish off the game this time around and hang around till the end which is what I have done over the years. I was telling Shubman, even if you dream about a situation like that, you'll just go back to sleep, you won't think it's real. It was a dream start for me, first four balls, two free-hits, a six and a four. Just calms you down gets you into the innings. The pitch was pretty good and allowed me to play my game - just time the ball, hit the gaps, run hard and get the boundary whenever needed. There's a great atmosphere in the change room, we are loving each others' company, the spirit is there for everyone to see. We understand it's a long tournament, you need to create some momentum. Special feeling playing at home, playing in front of all these people.
Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten 103 off 97 balls, including 6 fours and 4 maximums. He has been awarded the Man of the Match.
India star Virat Kohli struck his third fifty in four World Cup innings when he reached the landmark against Bangladesh in Pune. Kohli's latest one-day international half-century came off 48 balls, including four fours and a six, with tournament hosts India on course to make it four wins out of four at 171-2 off 27 overs chasing a target of 257. The 34-year-old former captain's innings followed scores of 85 and 55 not out in recent victories over Australia and Afghanistan, with his lone failure in the tournament to date -- 16 -- coming during a seven-wicket defeat of arch-rivals Pakistan in Ahmedabad on Saturday.
I think wicket looks very good, there was no turn on the wicket, if we play simple cricket, we can chase it. The celebration was dedicated to our fielding coach. After every game, we get best fielder award and so I wanted to show the fielding coach, see I am here. I would say flat wicket, ball was coming nicely onto the bat, hopefully our batters can bat well in the middle and chase it down. You have to bowl into the stumps, there is nothing on the wicket for the spinners, so you have to bowl it tight.
In a terrible development for the Indian side, all-rounder Hardik Pandya injured himself and walked off the field during the ICC Cricket World Cup match against Bangladesh. Pandya came to bowl his first over of the game in the ninth over and was smashed for two successive fours in second and third deliveries by Litton Das. While attempting to stop the second four, Pandya tried to use his right leg to stop the ball but slipped and twisted his ankle. He appeared to be in pain and got some treatment on his left leg and his ankle was taped. Pandya had a small practice run but did not look good and had to be taken off the field. Star batter Virat Kohli completed the rest of the over for Pandya. "Hardik Pandya's injury is being assessed at the moment and he is being taken for scans," tweeted BCCI.