India heaved a sigh of relief on Sunday after captain Rohit Sharma roared back to form less than two weeks before the start of the Champions Trophy. The 37-year-old scored his 32nd career ton in a record knock at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack in the second game of the three-match series against England as India secured a second successive win to seal the contest with an unassailable 2-0 lead. Following the knock and the win, Rohit had a message for his critics.
A failed run in the red-ball format since September, which included a forgettable return to Ranji Trophy last month, raised a lot of questions about his future in the sport. Many reckoned the upcoming Champions Trophy could be his last international campaign amid uncertainty over whether the selectors would take him to England for the Test series in the summer. Criticism peaked after a failed show in the Nagpur ODI game against England. However, he put all the talks to bed after an impressive knock of 119 off 90 in Cuttack to remind his critics that he isn’t done yet.
Speaking in a video posted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Rohit called for trust and faith towards a seasoned player, who has been around for a long time. He added that a few failures would not change the way he bats and to overcome failures, one needs to play with a mindset of trying to get runs.
“When people have played for a number of years and scored so many runs over the years, that means something. I have played this game for a long time now and I understand what is required of me. It was just about doing your things, I did my thing. What I did today was one of my things. In my mind, it was about doing things I do, bat the way I do,” he said.
“I have been here long enough, so one or two knocks would not change my mind and the way I bat. Just another day at the office. As long you go out there and know on going to bed you know you gave your best, that is all that matters. You just need to get back to that, the mindset of scoring runs. It is a difficult thing to do, but much easier to say. In my mind, it was about enjoying.”
Rohit surpasses Sachin Tendulkar with Cuttack knock
One of the standout aspects of the knock on Sunday was that Rohit surpassed the legendary Sachin Tendulkar to become the second-highest run-getter for India as an opener in international cricket. In 343 matches, he has scored 15,404 runs at an average of 45.43, with 44 centuries and 79 fifties. His best score is 264. On the other hand, Sachin has scored 15,335 runs at an average of 48.07 in 346 matches and 342 innings. Virender Sehwag remains at the top of the chart with 15,758 runs in 321 matches.
The four-wicket triumph in Cuttack was Rohit’s 36th ODI win as captain. He is now tied with legendary Viv Richards for the third-highest wins as captain in the format. Clive Lloyd, Ricky Ponting and Virat are tied at the top with 39 wins in the ODIs as captain.
