Zaheer Khan, the former India pacer believes Rohit Sharma has molded his game according to India’s needs and scored a brilliant hundred on Day 3 of the ongoing Oval Test against England.
Rohit Sharma Adapted His Game According To Conditions: Zaheer Khan
Former pacer Zaheer Khan has lauded Rohit Sharma for his outstanding 127-run knock against England, saying that the opener adapted and molded his game according to India’s needs to score a brilliant hundred on Day 3 of the ongoing Oval Test.
The 34-year-old opener made batting look extremely easy in overcast conditions during his stay at the crease and also completed 3000 Test runs in the process. Zaheer Khan further said that Rohit Sharma has made a conscious effort to set himself up at the crease which is allowing him to leave deliveries on and around the off-stump in seamer-friendly conditions.
“His intentions were clear. He has adapted his game according to the English conditions. While facing the new ball, he is trying to set himself up at the crease that enables him to leave the deliveries outside the off-stump and pick the balls which he can target,” Zaheer Khan told CricBuzz Chatter.
England bowlers were made to toil by the combination of Rohit Sharma(127) and Cheteshwar Pujara (61), who put on a partnership of 153 for the second wicket, making run-scoring look easy despite seamer-friendly overcast conditions. While Rohit Sharma fell to a pull shot on 127, Cheteshwar Pujara was caught in the slips for 61.
Rohit Sharma slammed a century off 205 balls with the help of 12 fours and a six that he used to bring his ton. He went on to score 127 runs off 256 deliveries. With that, he also shattered 5 records.
- He completed 15,000 runs in international cricket, only the 8th player from India to achieve the feat.
- Rohit Sharma also completed 11,000 runs as an opener across all formats.
- The century at Oval helped him complete 2,000 runs in England.
- The 127-run knock meant he has completed 1,000 runs in 2021 across all formats.
- Rohit Sharma also crossed the 3,000-run mark in Test cricket.
Rohit Sharma Relishes When The Ball Comes At Pace: Zaheer Khan
Bad light stopped play at The Oval with India ahead by 171 runs. India ended the day at 270/3, with Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara scoring 127 and 61, respectively. Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja will resume India’s innings on Day 4. Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara were dismissed in the same over by Ollie Robinson soon after the pair brought up their 150-ruin stand.
“The Oval pitch offers bounce and Rohit Sharma relishes when the ball comes at pace. He has molded his game according to India’s needs and scored a brilliant ton,” Zaheer added.
India was 270 for 2 with a 171-run lead before bad light forced early stumps on Day 3 of the ongoing Oval Test. Virat Kohli was batting on 22 while Ravindra Jadeja was unbeaten on 9.