‘He isn’t going anywhere’: Rohit Sharma’s cautious fifty wins praise from former India cricketer | Cricket News
Former India cricketer Mohammed Kaif praised Rohit Sharma‘s impressive half-century performance in the second ODI against Australia at Adelaide Oval, where he scored 73 runs off 97 balls. The innings came at a crucial time in Rohit’s career, as he faces competition from younger players and speculation about his future in the team.Rohit’s innings included seven fours and two signature pull shots for sixes, helping India recover after early setbacks. The knock proved particularly significant as Virat Kohli was dismissed for his second consecutive duck, and captain Shubman Gill also fell early.
“Too much social media chatter about his future, tough pitch, world class pacers operating, Gill and Kohli out cheaply… Despite all that Rohit plays a very important inning for India and his career. This 73 at Adelaide will give him a lot of confidence. Rohit shows he isn’t going anywhere,” Kaif posted on X.
Kaif tweet
The innings helped Rohit achieve two significant milestones. He surpassed former captain Sourav Ganguly to become India’s third-highest run-scorer in ODIs, with 11,249 runs in 275 matches at an average of 48.69, including 32 centuries and 59 fifties.Rohit also became the first Indian to score 1,000 runs against Australia in Australia, accumulating 1,071 runs in 21 ODI matches at an average of 56.36 and a strike rate of 89.32, with four hundreds and three fifties.The match saw India batting first after Australia, leading the series 1-0, won the toss. Xavier Bartlett’s impressive bowling (3/39) reduced India to 17/2, dismissing both Gill (9) and Kohli (0) early.Rohit and vice-captain Shreyas Iyer stabilized the innings with a crucial 118-run partnership. Iyer contributed 61 runs from 77 balls, including seven fours.Axar Patel continued his good form at number five, scoring a quick 44 off 41 balls with five boundaries.Adam Zampa’s spell (4/60) put India in trouble at 226/8, but a late partnership between Harshit Rana (24 not out from 18 balls) and Arshdeep Singh (13) helped India reach 264/9 in their final innings.The 36-year-old Rohit’s position in the team has been under scrutiny, with emerging talent Yashasvi Jaiswal showing consistent performances in Test cricket and impressive List-A cricket statistics, including an average above 52 with five centuries and seven fifties in 33 games.
Poll
How significant do you think Rohit Sharma’s recent half-century is for his ODI career?
Recent visuals of chief selector Ajit Agarkar speaking with Jaiswal during practice sessions had fueled speculation about Rohit’s future in ODI cricket, especially considering he would be 40 by the 2027 World Cup.In the all-time ODI runs list for India, Sachin Tendulkar leads with 18,426 runs in 463 matches, followed by Virat Kohli with 14,181 runs in 304 games. Rohit’s recent achievement places him firmly in third place, ahead of Ganguly’s 11,121 runs from 308 matches.
