"He has made a brilliant comeback" - Virender Sehwag lauds Rohit Sharma for his performance in 1st ODI against West Indies
Former India opener Virender Sehwag has lauded Rohit Sharma for making an impact on his return after injury. He commended the right-hander for his impressive captaincy and batting in the ODI series opener against West Indies.
In a video shared by Sehwag on his social media accounts, he pointed out how Sharma has made a thumping comeback after missing the entire South Africa tour because of his hamstring injury.
Sehwag said:
"Rohit Sharma, who missed the South Africa tour due to injury, has made a brilliant comeback. While India won the match under his captaincy, he also contributed significantly with that bat."
India's white-ball captain showcased stunning form in the encounter, scoring 50 crucial runs at the top from just 51 deliveries. His knock was instrumental in the hosts clinching the contest by six wickets.
Sehwag added that many expected Virat Kohli to perform with the bat, as he is due for a big knock for a while now.
He pointed out that while the star batter started off well by slamming two boundaries, he perished trying to play the pull shot.
"Everybody thought that India would win the game by 8-9 wickets. The openers gave a great start. It was expected that Virat Kohli would impress with the bat. He started off that way too, but unluckily got caught at fine leg."
"Suryakumar Yadav and Deepak Hooda showcased great composure" - Virender Sehwag
India then lost Ishan Kishan and Rishabh Pant in quick succession as well.
Sehwag labeled Pant's run out as unlucky. The southpaw was dismissed by Alzarri Joseph at the non-striker's end as he used his shoe to deflect Suryakumar Yadav's straight drive back to the stumps.
Pant had to take the long walk back as he was caught outside his crease.
Suryakumar Yadav and debutant Deepak Hooda then steadied the ship for the Men in Blue. Sehwag hailed the duo for seeing India through with their unbeaten 62-run partnership.
The former cricketer noted that India's middle order had failed to do the job in South Africa and it was good to see the two batters take responsibility on Sunday.
"Rishabh Pant was unlucky. Very rarely it happens that a batter hits a perfect straight drive and the non-striker gets run out because of it. At this juncture, it seemed West Indies would make a comeback, as India's middle-order is inexperienced.
"Suryakumar Yadav and Deepak Hooda showcased great composure and finished off the game, which we did not see in South Africa from our middle-order and lower middle-order batters."
Look who are here! 🙌
The trio has joined the squad and sweated it out in the practice session today. 💪
#TeamIndia | #INDvWI | @Paytm https://t.co/Nb9Gmkx98f
India and West Indies will resume their battle for one-upmanship on Wednesday, February 9 as they lock horns in the second ODI of the three-match series at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.