Indian batsman Ajinkya Rahane has said that he was relived to finally score his maiden ODI ton and get a good night's sleep after that.
Rahane hit a blistering 106 off 100 balls, including 10 fours and four sixes, to set the seal on world champions India's crushing nine-wicket win over England at Edgbaston on Tuesday. Victory gave India an unbeatable 3-0 lead in the five-match ODI series.
For Rahane, opening in place of the injured Rohit Sharma, it also meant he'd reached three figures for the first time in 33 ODIs, which was just what the batsman needed after twice falling in the 40s, Sport24 reported.
Ahead of Friday's fifth and final ODI in Headingley, Rahane said that he was batting well in the first two ODIs, but got out on 45 and 41. He added that that hurt him a lot because if one is batting so well in good conditions against this attack, if one gets a big score it is good for his confidence and team morale.
Rahane also said that it hurt the team chances too that he was not converting his starts, adding that after two 40s in the first two ODIs, and the way he got out, he was really hurt.
The batsman said that he couldn't sleep after the first game because the way he got out, stumped, adding that it was a really silly mistake of his. He said that he was really determined in the third ODI.
He said that his focus in the third ODI was to focus that bit harder once he crossed 40, at least for those 10 next runs. And he added that after that he backed his instinct.