1 July 2019 OUTLOOK 51
by Qaiser Mohammad AliW
HEN Rohit Sharma walked
out to open the innings
against Pakistan in the
World Cup on June 16 at
Old Trafford, Manchester,
it is quite possible that his
mind travelled back to his three-ball
duck against the same opponents in
the 2017 Champions Trophy final.
Quite possibly, his 20-ball 15 against
Pakistan at the 2015 World Cup in
Adelaide rankled too. Amends had to
be made for both ‘failures’.
In sublime form, Rohit compensated
in a bravura style he has made his own.
The 32-year-old proved once again—if
proof was required—his imperious
mastery of ODI batsmanship, inhabit-
ing the rank of the world No.2 ODI
batsman with cool assurance. On a
scoreboard recording India’s compre-
hensive 89-run win over Pakistan, his
113-ball 140 sparkles the brightest.
Earlier in this World Cup, he had
hammered, nay laced, 122 not out
against South Africa and 57 against
defending champions Australia. Rohit
was in form, but needed to stamp his
authority over Pakistan. In the event,
a couple of run out chances rose up as
mirages, tantalising the hapless Paki-
sta nis, then they were blanked out by
Rohit’s unremitting brilliance, till he
gave his wicket up.
Rohit is often compared to Virat Kohli
in terms of consistency. Kohli may be
the world No.1 ODI batsman, but Rohit
the opener has lately been more con-
sistent than his captain, as his last 12
innings testify: 87, 62, 7, 2, 37, 0, 14, 95,
56, 122 not out, 57, and 140. The India
vice-captain’s impactful run in the
World Cup is indeed staggering: 319
runs, including two centuries, in three
innings, with the New Zealand match
being a lost opportunity to score more.
Kohli may be the only batsman so far
in cricket history to average more than
50 in all three formats—Tests (53.76),ODIs (59.57, till the Pakistan match)
and T20 Internationals (50.29). Rohit,
too, is in a rarefied echelon–classical,
lazy elegance, and a silkily fluid stroke-
play that seem to invite only superla-
tives for comparison. Kohli may appear
to hurry into his shots, be it a rasping
cover drive or a confident pull, but in
contrast to Kohli’s emphatic stroke-
play, Rohit inflicts minimum violence:
the bat, so slight and malleable in his
hands, seems to be a magic wand,
sending loose deliveries shamefacedly
to the boundary, or a potentate’s scep-
tre, banishing balls that have the aud-
acity to rear at him, depositing them
over the ropes. We see him now exe-
cuting those upper cuts over the slips
and point, the pulls behind the square
leg umpire, the gentle pushes—all of
them nonchalantly.
What lies behind the freshly geared
brio that is lifting Rohit’s game in thisWorld Cup? Rohit Sharma enlightens
us himself: “It’s a very good phase in
my life. The newly born daughter has
put me in a very good space. I’m enjoy-
ing my cricket, coming off a great IPL
campaign. The focus was always to
start off well and then see where the
team is heading—and then the individ-
ual.” He said this after India’s 89-run
win against Pakistan.
Coach and former India batsman
Pravin Amre, who has seen his fellow
Mumbaikar flourish from his early years,
throws some more light. “As an opener,
he now takes his time to settle down. He
has matured and his confidence comes
from scoring consistently. Moreover, heis now taking more responsibility, as if he
is going to play 300 balls. He looks more
determined to succeed, perhaps because
he was ignored for the 2011 World Cup
[though he played in the 2015 World
Cup], after playing in the T20 World Cup
four years earlier, in 2007. He is now
self-motivated and has the hunger to
score runs,” the former India opener,
who saw Rohit represent Mumbai as the
team’s coach from 2006 to 2010,
tells Outlook.
Interestingly, the man who scores
tons for fun took 43 ODIs to score his
first century (Sachin Tendulkar took 79
matches to get his first hundred). The
Rolls Royce has chewed up pitches on
all continents since then: Rohit has
smashed three double centuries, part of
his 24 tons in 209 ODIs.
Kiran More, a former India wic ket-
keeper and chief national selector,
first saw Rohit score a century in Baroda
as a teenager and was ‘amazed’ by his
potential. “When you see a player you
give him more opportunities. Earlier
he would at times play rash shots, but
not now. Today, he has bec ome a top
player. And everyone—Dhoni, Virat
etc.—trusts him. If Rohit wins one
out of six matches I’ll be happy,” More
tells Outlook.
Rohit’s former Mumbai teammate
Wasim Jaffer feels he has sorted out his
batting jigsaw. “Earlier, his batting pos-
ition wasn’t settled. But a lot of people
backed him as they saw the potential.
He is now realising his potential. He
doesn’t take undue risks initially, till
30-35 balls. Then he shifts gears. He is
in a good shape in his personal life and
that too helps,” says Jaffer, under whose
captaincy Rohit represented Mumbai.
In a place like England, where the ball
wobbles and seams a lot, openers play a
crucial role—see off the new ball and build
a foundation for the middle-order to
build upon. Match after match, Rohit is
giving Team India an ideal springboard.
His care ssing blade must speak elo-
quently in the matches to come. OThe Nataraj Rasa
Rohit Sharma’s willowy wizardry has fans distracted with admiration
In his recent red-hot
form, Rohit has even
outstripped Kohli in
consistency. Both Kiran
More and Pravin Amre
talk about his maturity.