Chinmay Kore
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- 15 Mar 2015
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Having helped his side scrape through against hosts Zimbabwe in the opening ODI of the three-match series, Ambati Rayudu said he found batting in the morning very tough. The middle-order batsman dropped anchor for India and scored a vital hundred to help his side recover from a precarious position and post a competitive total. The score was just about enough for Ajinkya Rahane's side as India edged Zimbabwe by four runs.
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Rayudu said: "'It was very tough to bat in the morning. Me and Ajju (Rahane) were batting well till he got out. I knew that one had to bat through and I am happy that I took the responsibility. I was constantly telling Stuart Binny to hold back because we couldn't lose wickets at that stage. He batted brilliantly. Contributing to the team is more important than scoring a hundred."
Captaining India for the first time, Ajinkya Rahane had a winning start, albeit a nervy one. The Mumbai batsman was pleased with his side's efforts. "Very happy with the way we played," Rahane said. "Rayudu batted really well, it wasn't easy to bat at the start. They bowled well as well. We knew that 255 was a good score and the credit goes to the bowlers as well. Harbhajan Singh was good and so was Axar Patel. I was trying to be calm during the last few overs, but I was very nervous inside.'
Zimbabwe almost pulled off a miracle as Elton Chigumbura slammed a stunning hundred to put Zimbabwe on top after a middle-order collapse. The homeside looked set to take the opening day honours, but India fought back at the very end to edge the game. Chigumbura reflected on the loss at the end of the game. "It's disappointing to lose a game after working so hard," he said. "We learnt that it is not over until it's over, hopefully we can turn up good for the next game. We lost wickets in groups and that's what cost us today. It's always good to score runs and hopefully I can carry on and win games for Zimbabwe.'"
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Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Rayudu said: "'It was very tough to bat in the morning. Me and Ajju (Rahane) were batting well till he got out. I knew that one had to bat through and I am happy that I took the responsibility. I was constantly telling Stuart Binny to hold back because we couldn't lose wickets at that stage. He batted brilliantly. Contributing to the team is more important than scoring a hundred."
Captaining India for the first time, Ajinkya Rahane had a winning start, albeit a nervy one. The Mumbai batsman was pleased with his side's efforts. "Very happy with the way we played," Rahane said. "Rayudu batted really well, it wasn't easy to bat at the start. They bowled well as well. We knew that 255 was a good score and the credit goes to the bowlers as well. Harbhajan Singh was good and so was Axar Patel. I was trying to be calm during the last few overs, but I was very nervous inside.'
Zimbabwe almost pulled off a miracle as Elton Chigumbura slammed a stunning hundred to put Zimbabwe on top after a middle-order collapse. The homeside looked set to take the opening day honours, but India fought back at the very end to edge the game. Chigumbura reflected on the loss at the end of the game. "It's disappointing to lose a game after working so hard," he said. "We learnt that it is not over until it's over, hopefully we can turn up good for the next game. We lost wickets in groups and that's what cost us today. It's always good to score runs and hopefully I can carry on and win games for Zimbabwe.'"
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