"The first time, obviously, the entire India was watching the match — the whole world was watching. Behind the wicket, you’re constantly analysing, thinking, “The match is slipping away.†Looking at the situation, I’d definitely say that all the prayers of Indians worked — that’s for sure."
"Some people had already left the stadium. They were with me, they walked out thinking the match was over and India had lost. They didn’t see your acting there, sir — but I saw this performance. This is a realistic thing. For the last two or three overs, this was going on in my mind. I felt the match was going away because quick runs were coming regularly in those overs. So I started thinking, “What can Rishabh do here?†That’s how a keeper’s mind works — how can I contribute something?"
"I thought about trying to slow the game down. Then I realised it’s a World Cup final. You’re scared to try something like this in international cricket — like you said, there’s stress everywhere. Every decision you make, you have to be sure it’s in the best interest of the team, and you have to trust that what you’re doing is right. Because if it backfires, you know the whole world turns against you."
"This kept running in my head for two or three overs. Then a point came when I thought, “If we lose the World Cup, there shouldn’t be a regret later that I didn’t even try from my side.†So I decided — let’s see what happens, next over, sit down.
"I called him and asked what happened. I said, “Take your time.†Yogi bhai came as well. I told him, “Take full time — you understand, right?†He said yes and took his time calmly. Rohit bhai and the rest of the team didn’t know about this. This was just my own thought process because you’re trying to do whatever best you can from your side."