New Delhi, India

India beat Bangladesh by seven wickets while chasing a paltry 95 on Day 5 of the second and final Test, at Green Park, Kanpur, on Tuesday (Oct 1) to sweep the series 2-0. A result looked improbable when play resumed on Day 4 after the preceding two days were washed out due to rain and wet outfield. Bangladesh were 107-3 at stumps on Day 1 and resumed the penultimate day, on Monday (Sep 30), from there on. The Indian bowlers combined to dismiss the visitors for 233. In response, Rohit Sharma-led India went into the top gear and scored at over eight runs an over and declared at 285/9, notched up in just 34.4 overs, and closed the day's play by reducing the opposition to 26/2. On the final day, India bundled out Bangladesh for 146 and chased down a paltry 95 in style. While the Indian bowlers shined in the win, the batters' aggressive play breathed life into the rain-marred contest. Hence, Rohit explained the approach and thought behind India's belligerent batting.

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'We were ready for it even if we got bowled out for 100-150'

At the post-match presentation, Rohit said, "Once we lost two and a half days, when we came on day 4, we wanted to get them out as quickly as possible and see what we can do with the bat. When they got bowled out for 230, it wasn't about the runs we got but the overs we got at them. Pitch didn't have much. To make a game out of it on that pitch was a superb effort. It was a risk we were willing to take because when you're trying to bat like that, you can be bundled out for a low score. But we were ready for it even if we got bowled out for 100-150."

Also read: His message was...: Rahul on how Rohit's pep talk motivated India to breathe life into rain-marred Kanpur Test

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In the Bangla Tigers' second essay, the Najmul Shanto-led side were clueless in front of Jasprit Bumrah, R Ashwin, and Ravindra Jadeja as the trio shared nine wickets amongst them. During the paltry 95-run chase, India lost three wickets but Yashasvi Jaiswal's 51 propelled India to an easy win, with as many as 45 overs to spare. He was also the top-scorer (72) in India's first innings, along with KL Rahul (68) and Virat Kohli (47).

With this win, India showed their hunger to keep going ahead in the ongoing ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 cycle and cement a place in next year's final. They remain at the top with a win percentage of 74.24. Australia and Sri Lanka are at the second and third spot, respectively.