"Happy that he got a hundred because he missed out on a lot of hundreds" - Sunil Gavaskar hails Rohit Sharma for century against Afghanistan
Former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar praised skipper Rohit Sharma for his scintillating knock of 131 off 84 deliveries against Afghanistan in Delhi on October 11. He was also particularly delighted at the champion batter converting his half-century into a 100, a trait Rohit has lacked in recent times.
Chasing 273 for victory, Team India romped home by eight wickets with 15 overs to spare.
Despite leapfrogging former Australia captain Ricky pointing to third on the all-time list of ODI centuries, Rohit has failed to convert his 50s into three-figure scores over the last two years. To increase tempo from the get-go, Rohit has been dismissed between 50 to 100 often since 2021.
Speaking to Star Sports post-game, Gavaskar felt Rohit converting his starts to centuries is highly beneficial to the team cause.
"I'm very happy that he got a hundred because he missed out on a lot of hundreds," Gavaskar said. "With him, he is a risk taker. And therefore sometimes, what happens is, in the 60s, 70s - look at the number of times - where he got the team off to a flying start with half-centuries.
"But he wants to carry on in the same way because it benefits the team. For example, today, you get that (run rate of) 8 runs per over."
During his knock, Rohit Sharma broke several records, including becoming the fastest Indian to a century in the World Cup off 63 deliveries. He overtook the previous mark held by Kapil Dev off 72 balls against Zimbabwe in 1983 World Cup.
Despite the reduced number of centuries since 2020, the Indian skipper has stuck at a much higher strike rate of over 114 over the last two years.
"The strike rate, it helps your net run rate. Who knows what's gonna happen? After another 5-6 matches. You might need those decimal points to qualify. So clearly, he might have missed out on a few hundred, but he entertained all of us. And today was another special occasion. Some of the sixes that he hit, are just unbelievable," Gavaskar stated.
With the win, Team India jumped to second on the points table with four points in two games at an excellent net run rate. They defeated Australia in the opening encounter by six wickets in the 42nd over in Chennai.
"Viru was also similar" - Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar compared watching Rohit Sharma's batting to former Indian opener Virender Sehwag following his record-breaking century against Afghanistan.
Renowned for entertaining and devastating batting displays, Sehwag was one of India's biggest match-winners, with 38 centuries across formats, including two Test triple centuries and an ODI double century.
Meanwhile, Rohit is the only cricketer with three 200s in ODIs and became the leading centurion in World Cups with seven, overtaking the record held by Sachin Tendulkar (6).
"Every century of his is a delight to watch. Because there is that ease with which he seems to be caressing the ball when he is hitting the ball along the ground. Very few batters have the ability to pull, off the front foot that he does. Same thing with Virender Sehwag, Viru was also similar. Opening batter goes bang-bang and scores 60s-70s, 80s," Gavaskar said.
During his blistering knock, Rohit Sharma became the joint-fastest to 1,000 World Cup runs with David Warner. He surpassed Chris Gayle for the most international sixes with 556.
"Look, we as cricket fans, lovers of batting, want them to carry on," the former Indian skipper continued. "So when they don't. Then we sometimes get very upset. Like what kind of shot you have played. But they still score 60,70,80s. But we want them to go on and score a hundred.
"Happy that after January, he has got a hundred. Because this is what India needs, India needs a start from their skipper. The kind of flying start that is given, because that propels a team to a big score."
In the recently concluded Asia Cup, Rohit became the second fastest to 10,000 ODI runs, behind only teammate Virat Kohli.
All this perfectly sets up India's upcoming marquee clash against Pakistan in Ahmedabad on Saturday, October 14. Both teams enter the contest with two wins in as many games, with Pakistan beating the Netherlands and Sri Lanka.