'There were nerves but we had full trust in our batters' - KL Rahul lauds Shreyas Iyer, R Ashwin for match-winning show against Bangladesh

India’s stand-in captain KL Rahul has said that while he was nervous during the tense run chase, he was confident that the batters would succeed in getting the job done in the second Test in Mirpur, Dhaka.

Chasing 145, Bangladesh had India on the mat at 74/7 before an unbeaten 71-run eighth-wicket stand between Shreyas Iyer (29*) and Ravichandran Ashwin (42*) helped the visitors register a famous three-wicket win and clinch the series 2-0.

There’s always belief but there were nerves, we are human: KL Rahul

“You just trust the guys in the middle. There’s always belief but there were nerves, we are human. But we trusted the batters out,” Rahul said in the post-match presentation ceremony. “Today, Ashwin and Shreyas did it with ease and style. Well done to them to earn India the win. We never thought it’d be a cakewalk, thought we needed to grind and work hard for runs.

“It was tougher with the new ball. We lost more wickets than we’d have liked. We’ve made mistakes but will look to learn and hopefully put a better performance if a similar situation arises in the future. Happy with our bowling depth in the last 6-7 years,” he further added.

Even Rahul’s opposite number Shakib Al Hasan lauded Shreyas Iyer and Ravichandran Ashwin for their grit and determination. However, he added that another wicket for Bangladesh could have changed the outcome of the contest.

“Everyone contributed, we’ve played well in this venue. Shreyas and Ashwin batted well under pressure. We needed one more wicket. We can think of lots of ifs and buts but happy with the way we fought,” Shakib said.

Iyer and Ashwin negated the lethal Bangladesh spinners with their calculated approach and ensured that there were no further hiccups for India after they were reduced to 74/7.