23:24 IST:
The captain of Zimbabwe - Sikandar Raza, on being asked about his finger injury, he says he will go for an X-ray tomorrow and is hopeful that everything will be fine. He says the team plans to take an extra day to reset, but stresses that he does not want to focus on venues or any change of country. He feels that thinking along those lines would only distract them from learning the right lessons from the game. For him, he says, what matters is improvement, not excuses. He adds that if Zimbabwe are good enough to progress, they must be able to play quality cricket anywhere, be it here or in Sri Lanka. Speaking about the conditions, Raza mentions that they expected the pitch to remain flat, but it began to turn, and that is where they lost control. From an experience point of view, he terms it a valuable game, saying the players will learn how to bowl on slower surfaces and how to handle batters who can strike the ball powerfully over long distances. He also notes that if they find themselves in similar conditions again, especially at smaller venues against sides like West Indies, the lessons from this game will be useful. On the chase, Raza reveals that there was a phase where he felt even 18 runs anover in the last seven overs was achievable on that ground, given how well the ball travels when struck cleanly. Details that the plan was to keep ticking along at around 12 or 13 an over without taking undue risks, which they managed for a while. However, he admits that Gudakesh Motie’s spell changed the entire complexion of the game. Still, he maintains that with two set batters, a lot of runs can be scored in the final overs at this venue. Despite the heavy defeat, Raza says that they always step out with the intent to win and to earn respect through strong performances. Looking ahead, he says that facing India will be another big test, with both teams having something to prove. He concludes by saying Zimbabwe will take the lessons from this game, use their understanding of conditions in Chennai, and aim to put in a better performance.