Perth : India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni Wednesday heaved a sigh of relief after the World Champions won their first One-day International since June last year.
India defeated Sri Lanka by four wickets in the second ODI of the tri-series here for its first victory abroad since winning the series in the West Indies in June.
Asked about India finally winning an ODI overseas, Dhoni said: “To be honest, there is so much cricket being played these days, I have lost a track of where we played before the England tour. Having said that, the period has been tough for the team and this is definitely a welcome result.”
In-form batsman Virat Kohli and offie Ravichandran Ashwin were the stars for India at the WACA
Kohli made a fluent 77 before being run out while Ashwin picked up three wickets besides chipping in with a crucial 30 not out towards the end of the run-chase.
Dhoni praised his teammates and had a word of caution for Kohli, who struggled to cop with the heat and suffered cramps.
“You have to be ready for these circumstances, you have to hydrate yourself well, you do not get a runner nowadays. Hopefully, he (Virat) will cope with heat better in the coming matches,” he said.
On Ashwin, Dhoni said: “It is good to be on the winning side. Ashwin had to bowl out of his comfort zone in the Powerplays and the slog overs. He did well and batted well too.”
Ashwin said he was desperate to end its losing streak in ODIs.
“One victory on the board is very important, I was desperate to get a win today,” he said.
Asked whether he would rate himself as an all-rounder, Ashwin said: “I would rather rate myself to unfold as the game goes on. But will like to be considered as an offie first.”
Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene, on the other hand, said their effort of 233 after opting to bat was not good enough.
“We were probably 30-40 runs short. We had our chances but they played better than us. We kept wickets in hand, we did not play their spinners well, we got bogged down in the middle period. But out bowlers showed a lot courage and in the next game if we can put runs on the board, we have a good chance,” said Jayawardene referring to the next match against Australia here Friday.