NEW DELHI: In a spectacular turnaround, captain
Rohit Sharma
showcased his mastery with a remarkable hundred, his fifth in
T20Is
, as India recovered from a precarious 22 for four to post a formidable 212 for 4 against
Afghanistan
in the third T20I in Bengaluru.
Opting to bat first, India faced an early top-order collapse, but Rohit's unbeaten 121 (69 balls, 11x4, 8x6) and a stellar partnership of 190 runs with
Rinku Singh
(69 not out, 39 balls, 2x4, 6x6) revived the innings.
Rohit's innings, his highest score in T20Is, showcased both restraint and aggression, with the duo steering India to a commanding total. Rohit's previous best in T20Is was 118 against Sri Lanka at Indore in 2017.
Despite the impressive numbers, Rohit Sharma's century was not characterized by his usual aggressive style. Instead, he exhibited a controlled and strategic approach, having to restrain himself due to the challenging situation India found themselves in after a top-order collapse.
Rinku, Rohit's partner in the remarkable 190-run unbeaten fifth-wicket stand, also demonstrated a well-measured approach, using his destructive instincts judiciously. The partnership unfolded like a gradually-building crescendo, becoming the hallmark of their alliance.
Rohit's innings featured a rare shot from his repertoire – the reverse sweep – strategically employed to unsettle the Afghan spinners. Notably, a reverse sweep off leg-spinner Qais Ahmad helped him achieve a T20 fifty, marking his first since October 2022.
While there were the expected and iconic pulls that define a Rohit innings, one particular shot stood out – an on-one-leg pull off pacer Mohammed Saleem that soared into the second tier, leaving spectators in awe of its brilliance.
Soon, the fifty blossomed into a hundred off 63 balls, Rohit's first in T20I since his 111 against the West Indies at Lucknow in 2018, which came through a sliced boundary behind point off pacer Omarzai.
At the other end, Rinku had the simple job of keeping his end up and the left-hander did that job with maturity.
Despite the top-order collapse, Rinku displayed his aggressiveness when the opportunity arose, hitting a flicked six off Saleem over square leg and securing his second T20I fifty as the Afghan bowlers struggled.
However, the rest of the Indian top-order faced challenges, and Rohit couldn't have foreseen such a breakdown from his frontline batters. The aggressive approach, which has been a hallmark of India's new T20 template, encountered pitfalls in this match.
Yashasvi Jaiswal
was the first to depart, falling to left-arm pacer Fareed Ahmad, who cramped him for room. Jaiswal's top-edged pull found Mohammed Nabi in the deep.
Virat Kohli, receiving a warm welcome from the crowd, faced just one ball before succumbing to a climbing delivery from Ahmad, slicing the pull to Ibrahim Zadran just inside the circle. The unexpected early dismissals highlighted the challenges of an aggressive batting approach.
Sanju Samson
, who replaced wicket-keeper batter Jitesh Sharma in the eleven, too lasted just a ball, a mistimed pull off Azmatullah Omarzai ending in the hands of Nabi.
Amidst the pulling frenzy of his top-order colleagues, in-form Shivam Dube wanted to push one down to the vacant third man space, but all he could do was to nurdle the ball to Rahmanullah Gurbaz behind the stumps.
Ahmad ended his first spell with impressive figures of 3-0-10-3 as India ended the power play at a vastly underwhelming 30 for four.
But Rohit, after two failures in the series, found his range at the precise time as India collected 182 runs in the remaining 14 overs and in that 103 came in the last five overs when India batters slipped into overdrive.
(With PTI inputs)
English (US) ·