Rohit Sharma

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Contents

Career

Chases

ODIs, 2008-19

Rohit Sharma’s memorable ODI chases, 2008-19
From: June 7, 2019: The Times of India


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Rohit Sharma’s memorable ODI chases, 2008-19

2014-19: In limited overs games

Shashank Shekhar, Nov 9, 2019: The Times of India

The top five batsmen in limited- overs cricket, 2014-19
From: Shashank Shekhar, Nov 9, 2019: The Times of India


In Rajkot, Rohit, the stand-in captain, needed to guide the team to a resounding victory in the second T20I against Bangladesh to make up for the frustrating loss in the first game.

He took it upon himself to show who is the boss with a 43-ball 85 which gave India an eight-wicket romp over the clueless neighbours.

For Rohit, one of the greats of limited-overs batting, the Rajkot tie was special — it was his 100th T20I game which made him the first Indian male player to reach the milestone. In a tweet on Friday, Rohit expressed his joy: “Be it whichever format, I’m indebted to have this opportunity to do something for the country. I have cherished all these times and will do so forever.” Rohit’s Rajkot blitzkrieg has come on the back of his stellar show in the recent Test series against South Africa, in which he stroked over 500 runs in the three-match series.

He is in the midst of one of the most productive phases of his 12-year-old international career and is making the experts as well as fans drool over his exploits.

He himself admitted “the year 2019 has been very good so far.” Now, the sky is the limit for the precociously talented batsman, who took time to add maturity and consistency to his art. In the last five years, Rohit has come into his own and has almost matched Virat Kohli, the king of limited-overs cricket, for impact and substance. If one combines the ODIs and T20I numbers of the last five years, Kohli stands above everyone else with a total of 7048 in 140 matches at an average of 68.42 and a strike rate of 103.28. In the same period, Rohit has 7005 runs in 152 games with an average of 51.50 and a strike rate of 105.95.

What has pushed Kohli’s average well above Rohit’s is the number of not-outs he has achieved in this period — 33 to Rohit’s 14. Both have 23 hundreds in ODIs in this period but Rohit also has four T20 tons to Kohli’s none.

Rohit is also well ahead of other top batsmen in hitting sixes — he has smashed an astounding 254 of them.

In good spirits after the Rajkot triumph, Rohit told Yuzvendra Chahal, the most sparsely-built member of the Indian team, that even he (Chahal) could hit sixes Rohit belts with such uncanny regularity. “You don’t need muscles to hit sixes,” he told Chahal. “In any case, sixes are not just about power but also timing. Head should be still, position should be good. All this will ensure that you hit sixes.” Well, Rohit makes it look simple and effortless but for most others, it’s easier said than done.

Rohit’s knock drew hosannas from another opener who had the same destructive impact on bowlers, former India star Virender Sehwag. Sehwag said that Rohit’s scoring rate was unmatchable and even Virat Kohli could not show such consistency when it came to scoring at the pace at which Rohit scores.

“Hitting 3-4 sixes in an over or scoring 80-90 runs off 45 balls is an art that I haven’t even seen (Virat) Kohli pull off as regularly as Rohit,” Sehwag told Cricbuzz

Achievements

2017

Rohit Sharma in ODIs, as on 13 Dec 2017
From December 14, 2017: The Times of India

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Rohit Sharma in ODIs, 13 Dec 2017


2013-18

2013-2018: Rampant Rohit Sharma's magic run, October 30, 2018: The Times of India

Skipper Virat Kohli may be stacking up ODI hundreds by bucketload in the last few years, but he has remained a step behind Rohit Sharma in terms of 'highest individual score of the year by an Indian'. Rohit is holding the record since 2013, the year he scored his first (209) of the three double centuries in one-day internationals.

With 162 off 137 balls, a record-extending seventh 150 or more score for him, against West Indies in the fourth ODI of the five-match series at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai on Monday, Rohit has overtaken the lead from Kohli for this year too. India captain was leading the chart through his 160 not out against South Africa in Cape Town.

YEAR Score vs Opponent
2013 209 vs Australia in Bengaluru
2014 264 vs Sri Lanka in Kolkata
2015 150 vs South Africa in Kanpur
2016 171* vs Australia in Perth
2017 208* vs Sri Lanka in Mohali
2018* 162 vs West Indies in Mumbai


In 2013, the India's highest two individual scores was made by Rohit - 209 and 141* vs Australia in Bengaluru and Jaipur respectively.

While in 2014, Rohit scored the highest-ever individual score in ODIs - a 264 against Sri Lanka in Kolkata. That year the second best by an Indian was 139* by Kohli against the same opponent.

Similar to 2013, the top two highest scores by Indian batsmen in 2015 came from the bat of Rohit - a 150 against South Africa in Kanpur and 138 vs Australia in Melbourne. Kohli too scored a 138 that year against South Africa in Chennai.

With a 171 not out against Australia in Perth, Rohit again topped the chart in 2016, which was followed by Kohli's unbeaten 154 against New Zealand in Mohali.

And last year, Rohit slammed his third double hundred, a 208* against Sri Lanka in Mohali, which was way ahead of the second best of 150 by Yuvraj Singh against England in Cuttack.

2018

Asheem Mukerji, ROHIT RINGS IN DIWALI, November 7, 2018: The Times of India

Rohit Sharma- records, in brief, 2018
From: December 29, 2018: The Times of India


Rohit Sharma is the first batsman to hit 4 centuries in T20Is, going ahead of New Zealand’s Munro’s tally of 3. Rohit has also become the leading run-getter for India in this format, and second in the overall list:

1268 Runs (at 32.51 in 39 innings) by Rohit-Shikhar is a record by any pair in T20Is, bettering the 1154 (at 31.18 in 37 innings) by Warner-Watson for Australia

2019, Feb

Rohit Sharma’s records and statistics after India’s India’s T20I victory over NZ at Auckland
From: India Level Series With Maiden T20I Win on NZ Soil; Krunal, Rohit, Rishabh Play Lead Roles, February 9, 2019: The Times of India

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Rohit Sharma’s records and statistics after India’s India’s T20I victory over NZ at Auckland


2019, July: no. 1 in ODIs

In 2019, July, Rohit Sharma was no. 1 in ODIs
From: July 3 2019: The Times of India

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In 2019, July, Rohit Sharma was no. 1 in ODIs

2019, August: Achievements in T20Is

Rohit Sharma, Achievements in T20Is, till 2019, August
From: August 5, 2019: The Times of India

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Rohit Sharma, Achievements in T20Is, till 2019, August

2019: as an opener, at home

Rohit Sharma: as an opener, at home in 2019
From: Gaurav Gupta, January 2, 2021: The Times of India


See graphic:

Rohit Sharma: as an opener, at home in 2019

2020

In tests, till Dec

Rohit Sharma In tests, till Dec 2020
From: Gaurav Gupta, January 2, 2021: The Times of India

See graphic:

Rohit Sharma In tests, till Dec 2020.

2021

In tests, till Feb

Rohit Sharma in Tests, till Feb 2021
From: Gaurav Gupta, March 2, 2021: The Times of India

See graphic:

Rohit Sharma in Tests, till Feb 2021

Jan-Feb: Mr Indispensable

Gaurav Gupta, March 2, 2021: The Times of India

Rohit Sharma in Tests, Jan-Feb 2021
From: Gaurav Gupta, March 2, 2021: The Times of India

See graphic:

Rohit Sharma in Tests, Jan-Feb 2021

It’s easy to understand why Rohit Sharma felt that the undercooked pitch in the third Test, which finished within two days, was rather “easy to bat on”. On a track where batsmen were spooked by every ball, the star opener cracked 66 in the first innings, out of India’s paltry total of 145, and then finished off the match in style with his signature shot — dancing down the wicket and smashing the ball to deep mid-wicket off Joe Root.

On a similarly challenging turner in the previous Test, Rohit scored a masterly 161, out of an Indian total of 329. It was an innings which proved to be the sole difference between the two sides, and allowed India to come back into the series. Many felt that it was the classy Mumbaikar who deserved the man of the match award, even though the eventual winner, Ravichandran Ashwin took 10 wickets and scored a hundred in the game. Nevertheless, it was a ‘masterclass’ on how to thwart spinners on a pitch which Jonathan Agnew of the BBC termed as ‘not good enough for Test cricket.” What makes the classy Rohit such a dangerous batsman even on a dust bowl? His former teammate and close friend Abhishek Nayar offers an important insight.

“Any cricketer in Mumbai has to counter tough conditions while batting in local cricket. As a youngster, Rohit has played on wickets with red soil, on which the ball spins like a top, and in the Kanga league, where spinners become even more dangerous since both the wicket and the ball are wet, and the ball skids. Like it happened in Ahmedabad, you don’t know if the ball would stop and come, come straight or turn. If you see his sweep shot, it’s a very natural, ‘Mumbaiya shot,’ since the sweep comes handily while playing in turning conditions. “This is why most Mumbai batsmen, for example Shreyas Iyer, are very good players of spin bowling. If you don’t know how to play spin, you won’t be able to survive in the local leagues,” Nayar, now an assistant coach with Kolkata Knight Riders, told TOI.

However, this factor alone isn’t what makes Rohit a ‘special’ batsman, particularly in Test cricket in India. “His biggest strength is the amount of time he has to play the ball. He picks the length of the ball very early. He has now understood what his strengths are, and he can dominate a spinner,” says Nayar. Having witnessed Rohit score a superb hundred for Mumbai on a similarly tough wicket at the Karnail Singh Stadium in New Delhi against Railways back in 2009, Nayar tells you what Rohit’s approach is on such wickets. “On a turner, Rohit won’t think about surviving. He thinks how can he dominate a bowler, so that the bowler is looking for survival instead,” he reveals.

The former allrounder feels that, at 33, Rohit is now also a mature individual who is in command both on and off the field. “He has a different mindset now. He knows how to tactically approach his innings, which bowler he has to target. If you see his interviews in his younger days, he would say something unwarranted, would get upset, but now he’s so calm. He’s a different guy in a different stage of life now.”

Clearly, those ‘mental demons’ that perhaps afflicted Rohit in the early part of his career are a thing of the past. “He’s in an excellent zone mentally, because of which taking a decision has become easier for him. That means shot selection, for which he used to receive criticism at one point, has become easy for him. He believes in his defence. He has made a few small adjustments.”

“His long stride while playing spinners is perfect now. He plays the spinning ball right below his eye, and he is backing his instincts, rather than playing predetermined strokes, as was the case with a few other batsmen in the third Test,” explained former India batsman and ex-Mumbai coach Pravin Amre, who is now an assistant coach with Delhi Capitals.

In the IPL

2017- 2019 April

Gaurav Gupta, April 10, 2019: The Times of India

Rohit Sharma's IPL average, 2017- 2019, April 9
From: Gaurav Gupta, April 10, 2019: The Times of India


It’s not often that one is excited about an IPL game with the prospect of watching a bowler in action. After all, it’s the batsmen, particularly big-hitters like Chris Gayle, Andre Russell and MS Dhoni, who attract crowds and TV ratings.

On Wednesday night at the Wankhede Stadium, though, all eyes will be fixed on a 22-year-old West Indian fast bowler called Alzarri Joseph. Drafted in by the Mumbai Indians after Kiwi pacer Kyle Mills suffered an injury, the Antiguan skyrocketed to stardom on Saturday night with a sensational IPL debut which saw him return dream figures of 6/12 to dismantle Sunrisers Hyderabad in their own den. Joseph’s dream spell, the best by a bowler in IPL history, helped his team romp home to a 40-run win in a lowscoring game, as MI shot out the Sunrisers for just 96 after being restricted to 136.

Having delivered a match-defining performance like that right at the start, the youngster will be the toast of the ever-enthusiastic Wankhede crowd when MI lock horns with a dangerous-looking Kings XI Punjab on Wednesday night here.

The hosts will hope Alzarri provides another breakthrogh performance as they look to soar on the IPL-12 points table, where they currently lie on the fifth spot with six points after five games. The young gun has added more firepower to the MI pace battery, which already boasts of the No 1 pace bowler in the world-Jasprit Bumrah, the tall Aussie, Jason Behrendorff, and all-rounder Hardik Pandya, who seems to be getting better with the ball by the day since returning from his injury. Pandya has also been batting as well as he ever has, and was instrumental in MI put playing Chennai Super Kings a week back.

Punjab’s Rahul, meanwhile, stroked an unbeaten 71 off 53 balls as Kings XI made heavy weather of their chase against SRH on Monday night.

Considering Rohit’s slight weakness against left-arm seamers, it would be interesting to see how he meets the challenge of Englishman Sam Curran, who seems to be enjoying his first taste of the IPL, in which he has already taken a hat-trick.

In another boost for MI, pacer Lasith Malinga returned to the camp after taking part in the interprovincial one-day tournament back home in Sri Lanka. However, with Behrendorff and Joseph firing all guns, he may find it difficult to find a place in the XI.

Records, statistics

Sharma in ODIs, 2007-Jan 2019

Rohit Sharma’s statistics and records in ODIs, 2007-Jan 2019
From: January 31, 2019: The Times of India

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Rohit Sharma’s statistics and records in ODIs, 2007-Jan 2019

Runs and centuries, 2017 Jan 14, 2019

Runs and centuries scored by Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and other top batsmen between 2017 and Jan 14, 2019
From: January 15, 2019: The Times of India


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Runs and centuries scored by Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and other top batsmen between 2017 and Jan 14, 2019

As in 2019

Pratik Bandyopadhyay, Oct 20, 2019: The Times of India

Rohit’s records, statistics, As in 2019 Oct
From: Oct 20, 2019: The Times of India

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Rohit’s records, statistics, As in 2019 Oct

Though players in team sports insist they do not chase records, you could say, at the moment, records are chasing Rohit Sharma.

He became only the second Indian after the great Sunil Gavaskar to score three or more centuries in a single Test series. Gavaskar had achieved this feat twice against the mighty West Indians and once against Australia.

In fact, if Rohit goes on batting like this at the top of the innings, it may force a rethink in people who stay away from Test cricket for the lack of sixes that they go crazy about in ODIs and T20s these days. Because on Saturday he also broke the record for the number of sixes hit by a batsman in a Test series. He has now hit 17 sixes in this series, going past West Indies’ Shimron Hetmyer’s tally of 15 against Bangladesh.

But beyond all that data, the most heartening fact about Rohit’s performance in this series is that it has put an end to India’s worries about the opening slot and placed his stop-start Test career on a solid platform after so many years.

Team India batting coach Vikram Rathour’s relief was evident when he said, “I always believed he is too good a player not to be playing in any format. It was a good call to make him to open. With the amount of runs he has scored, he’s settled the issue for the time being. Somebody of his experience and the cricket he plays, if he starts coming good top of the order, it changes everything for the Indian team, even when you’re touring,” he said.

Rohit has taken to his new job like the proverbial fish and Rathour said he did not have to do much about his batting except the game plan. “In Tests, you need to play through those tough spells that you will get. I think he’s doing that really well in this series,” Rathore elaborated. “If he can keep doing that... Once he’s set, he’s a phenomenal player, we all know that he can really punish you. He just needed to make that mental adjustment and he has done that well,” he added. He was also generous in his praise for Ajinkya Rahane’s partnership with Rohit.

“Of course, the duo batted really well. There was a bit of moisture early on, the wicket was doing something. They also bowled in better areas but the recovery was phenomenal,” he remarked.

Rohit’s success after becoming an opening batsman has already drawn comparisons with Virender Sehwag, and with Rathour confirming he is a longterm solution, one can pin hopes on Rohit’s overseas performance.

Most sixes against a particular opponent, 2019

Rohit Sharma has established a new record for most sixes by a batsman against a particular opponent in all formats- as on January 17, 2019
From: January 17, 2019: The Times of India

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Rohit Sharma has established a new record for most sixes by a batsman against a particular opponent in all formats- as on January 17, 2019

World Cup, 2019

Rohit makes most of Tamim’s reprieve

Rohit Sharma has been dropped five times in this WC — the latest of which came against Bangladesh on Tuesday when Tamim Iqbal grounded an easy chance in the fifth over while the opener was batting on 9. Rohit didn’t need a second invitation to make his presence felt. Showing plenty of intent, the classy batsman sent the bowlers on a leather hunt, smashing seven boundaries and five sixes to bring up his fourth century of this World Cup. His blitz off 92 balls at a strike rate of 113.04 also gave time to his opening partner KL Rahul to settle down. Even though Rohit lost his concentration soon after he reached his century and got out by playing a lame shot, the inning laid the platform for Team India’s big total.

As in 2021 Sept

Rohit Sharma's Home and Away series record as opener, since Oct 2, 2019- Sep 5, 2021
From: Sep 7, 2021: The Times of India
All-time top openers in Tests, Min 25 innings, as on Sep 5, 2021
From: Sep 7, 2021: The Times of India


See graphics:


Rohit Sharma's Home and Away series record as opener, since Oct 2, 2019- Sep 5, 2021

All-time top openers in Tests, Min 25 innings, as on Sep 5, 2021


T 20s

2014-22

Rohit Sharma's performances in ICC KNOCKOUT GAMES, 2014-2022 T20 WC
From: Partha Bhaduri, Nov 11, 2022: The Times of India

See graphic:

Rohit Sharma's performances in ICC KNOCKOUT GAMES, 2014-2022 T20 WC


Till 2021

Nitin Naik, Oct 19, 2022: The Times of India


April 2007. Fans were still trying to come to terms with the cricket team’s early elimination from the ODI World Cup in West Indies.


Only a year before, the BCCI had reluctantly agreed to send a team to the T20 World Cup, to be held in South Africa in 2007, in exchange of getting the joint hosting rights for the 2011 ODI World Cup with Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.


For that they needed to put a team together and name 30 probables by June. They staged an event named Interstate T20 tournament to create a player pool. There was no TV coverage and entry to stadiums was free.


In the West Zone leg, Mumbai were playing against Gujarat at the Brabourne Stadium and chasing 142, they lost Ajinkya Rahane first ball. In walked Rohit Sharma, still only 19, and smashed an unbeaten 101 off 45 balls with 13 fours and five sixes to become the first Indian to score a T20 century.


Next month, he was in the 30-man probables for South Africa and was picked for the white-ball tours of England and Ireland. Despite irregular chances early on, the man went on to become a white-ball colossus.


Dinesh Lad, Rohit’s childhood coach, states, “He used to call me in 2007 and say he is not getting chances. I told him, this is an Indian team, not a gully-mohalle ka team. Chances willbe few. Grab them when they come. He scored a crucial 50 in a knockout game vs South Africa in Durban playing as Yuvraj Singh’s replacement and has not looked back since. ”
T20 came easily to Rohit, like the game itself, which was a problem as people confused his languid grace with laziness. 


Lad explains why Rohit embraced T20 when others struggled. “If you see Rohit, he mostly plays with a straight bat. He keeps things simple. Rarely do you see him getting out to fancy shots. ”


It’s a quality, his former Mumbai coach and India batsman Pravin Amre, who got Rohit a contract toplay for Air India and coached him at Mumbai in his debut season, and who was coach in that game vs Gujarat, also highlights.


“Rohit has a fantastic base. A great foundation. He also has wonderful clarity and doesn’t over-complicate things. When he bats, he doesn’t think about captaincy. When he captains, he doesn’t think about batting,” explains Amre. 
These attributes and a gift of picking length early and getting more time than others, armed him with another quality. Confidence. “He never doubts himself,” asserts Lad.


“In just his second match in the Giles Shield, I asked him if he canopen for the school (Swami Vivekanand). He jumped at the chance, despite never having opened before. Tyaala batting karaychi khujli ahe,” (He has an itch to just bat) he adds.


Perhaps that explains why he said yes when skipper MS Dhoni asked him to move to the top of the order in ODIs in 2013 vs England in Mohali. It turned out to be a career-defining move. The same applies to his Test renaissance in 2019 when he agreed to open.


Rohit will be leading India for the first time in an ICC event and at the age of 35, this could possibly be his last World Cup in the T20 format. 
After the last T20 WC in UAE,Rohit has advocated a high risk, high rewards approach. It has helped him score attractive 20s and 30s. But many feel he is selling himself short with this tactic. 


“I want him to play properly and give himself time. If he bats for 20 overs, he will get an 80 or 100 each time,” says Lad.


Amre concurs. “Look at the stats of his four T20I centuries and three double centuries in ODIs. The acceleration has come in the second half. From 150 to 200, he has taken about 20 balls. I hope he gives himself more time in Australia. He can dominate on those pitches as he plays the short ball well. ”

Trivia

Brabourne Stadium and Sharma

Nitin Naik, Rohit’s romance with CCI continues, October 30, 2018: The Times of India


There are marvellous stories about how Indian cricketers can do no wrong at certain venues. VVS Laxman was Bradmanesque at the Eden Gardens. His great state-mate and former Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin too had an eerie romance with the venue. Anil Kumble had to barely turn up at the Kotla to get wickets and Virat Kohli and the Adelaide Oval is an enchanting story too.

The same can be said about Rohit Sharma and the Brabourne Stadium. Indian cricket lovers were still coming to terms with India’s early exit from the 2007 World Cup when news filtered from the CCI that Rohit Sharma had become the first Indian to score a ton in the T20 format. He had blasted his way to 101 not out off 45 balls against Gujarat, hitting 13 fours and five sixes in the inaugural edition of the Interstate T20 meet which later on became the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tourney.

He also scored a triple hundred in the 2009-10 Ranji Trophy match against Gujarat at the CCI, apart from scoring strokeful cameos during the 2008-09 season for Mumbai, most notably against Rajasthan, which had left then-Rajasthan coach Ian Fraser in awe.

On Monday, he became the first batsman to hit a century in ODIs at the venue when he slammed 162 against West Indies in the fourth One-dayer. Ambati Rayudu followed suit and became the second. Apart from scoring 150-plus a record seven times, Rohit also became the first batsman to score a hundred in every format at the CCI.

Manipulating the field when set is Rohit’s great strength and when he is in form, he rarely seems to hit the ball. Hence he seldom appears to slog even when he is playing across the line. That is what he did on Monday too.

Speaking to the broadcasters mid-innings, he said, “I have grown up playing cricket in Mumbai and more so at the CCI. I understand the pace and bounce here and you need to use it to your advantage. Once you do that, you get value for your shots. I was trying to not hit it very hard throughout the innings and just tried to maintain my shape.”

During the last IPL, Virat Kohli, while analysing Rohit’s strengths as a rival skipper had said how he is the most dangerous batsman once he crosses 50 because he plays correct shots and is impossible to contain him. That perhaps explains why he has got three double hundreds in ODIs and so many 150-plus scores.

Speaking about carrying on after scoring a hundred in ODIs, Rohit, during the mid-innings break stressed on that typical Mumbai attitude of not getting out easily after getting set, “I generally feel that once you cross 100 it’s about you making a mistake and getting out. The bowlers will not get you out.”

YEAR-WISE DEVELOPMENTS

As in 2021 Sept

Partha Bhaduri, Sep 6, 2021: The Times of India

One-day cricket and Tests, there’s a massive difference between the two.” Rohit Sharma wasn’t stating the obvious after his career-defining 127 at the Oval. He was just trying to comprehend what took him so long to score his first Test century outside India: eight years and 47 innings since his debut, the third longest wait of all time behind Ian Redpath (64 innings) and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (52).

Arguably this generation’s most impactful white-ball opener, it’s only now, past 34, that Rohit is fulfilling a long-held prophecy: that of using the considerable talents at his disposal to become a viable option at the top of the order for India in away Tests.

“Most importantly it’s discipline,” he continued, offering a peek into the processes which led to the Oval knock, in which he completely eschewed his trademark flamboyance to play out a monumental 256 balls. It was the third longest innings by an Indian opener in England since 2000.

Rohit now has the most international hundreds of any Indian batsman in England, 9 to Dravid’s 8, with 8 of them having come after 2018. Yet none of the ones which came before mattered as much. “This (Oval ton) holds a lot of value. It has come in testing conditions against a quality bowling attack,” he said.

He must have wanted this one desperately, for years, to keep the effort going so late into his career. “It’s not just like you come in here (England) and get a hundred. It’s a process. It takes time. When you’re playing overseas it’s never easy. I had a lot of chats with players who have come in here and done well. I knew the rewards will happen, but it will take time. I was very patient.

“When I started opening, I knew all those big scores (overseas) are not just going to happen,” Rohit said, explaining how he had to “keep ticking the small boxes” in order to get the big one.

“You can’t just come to a place like England and play shots. There were little adjustments I had to make based on the situation and the conditions, certain type of bowlers. It was an enjoyable process.”

Rohit says he set incremental goals. “Most pleasing was that I was able to play 250 balls. If you look at the Tests (on this tour) I have played nearly 100 balls in every innings. That to me was a goal, see how I can stay on the pitch for as long as possible.

“Once you do that, things start to get easier. It’s discipline… leaving the ball, solid tight defence. Spending time has been my biggest takeaway. I don’t mind looking ugly at times as long as I can get the job done. When I came here for the WTC Final, I knew I had to put in my best effort however I could, whatever it takes.”

It’s the sort of traditional approach to building an innings most T20-bred batsmen now tend to dislike. Rohit says he realized in Oct 2019, when he was told to open the innings, that it could be a final opportunity to resurrect his flagging Test career. “At the back of my mind I knew this was my last chance. I batted in the middle order but things didn’t go as per the way I wanted it to. When you are playing a sport, you always have to take those chances, those risks. It would have been my last opportunity if I hadn’t succeeded. I was mentally prepared.”

The gifted seem to prefer the tougher road. What didn’t work out in the middle order, where it’s arguably easier to bat, worked wonders at the top. Rohit responded with 176 and 127 against SA in Visakhapatnam and hasn’t looked back.

His skewed home and away averages now look considerably better as opener: 75.08 at home to 43.15 away. Since that Vizag Test in Oct 2019, he averages the best among all openers worldwide at 58.48, ahead of Pakistan’s Abid Ali (43.66).

Interestingly, of his 8 Test hundreds (5 of them have now come as opener), 7 have resulted in India wins. “I trusted whatever I was doing,” Rohit said.

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