Indian Wicket-keeper batter KL Rahul heaped praise on Rohit Sharma for taking on the bowlers from word go which eventually helped the middle-order batters to carry on the momentum after the powerplay. The 36-year-old has been performing exceptionally well for the Men in Blue in the ongoing ODI World Cup 2023.
India’s captain Rohit Sharma laid the groundwork for the chase against Bangladesh by playing yet another aggressive top-order scoring 48 runs off 40 balls including seven boundaries and two sixes. The Indian skipper has scored 265 runs so far in the tournament, putting him at the top of the list of players with the most runs in the ongoing ODI World Cup.
Speaking to the media after an emphatic win over Bangladesh, KL Rahul hailed Rohit Sharma for brilliantly pacing his innings in ODI cricket and believes that scoring some boundaries at the beginning of the innings helps him to get on top of the quality bowlers. He lauded the Indian skipper for playing proper cricketing shots to score runs without going for any fancy shots.
“I don’t think Rohit walks in with that mindset, that he wants to take bowlers down. He’s in good nick. He’s been a phenomenal player over the years and he knows how to pace his innings.
“And once he gets off a few boundaries, then he knows how to get on top of the bowlers and he’s just done that with proper cricket shots here. You don’t see him slogging the ball or you don’t see him innovating. You know, he plays proper cricket shots and stays balanced and hits the ball,” KL Rahul said.
Rohit Sharma began his ODI World Cup campaign against Australia with a duck, but he has since found his best form with a string of match-winning performances to help India continue their winning streak in ODI World Cups. Rohit outperformed Devon Conway of New Zealand in terms of the most runs scored in the marquee event.
It Just Becomes A Bit More Easier For Us In The Middle Order – KL Rahul
KL Rahul feels that Rohit Sharma’s brilliance in the powerplay helps the middle order batter to take their time to settle in the middle over of the game and also made the observation there were no challenging circumstances for the middle order batters such as when the team required 60 runs off the final 150 balls.
“And when you have batters like that going really hard in the power play, then it just becomes a bit more easier for us in the middle order. Especially in the last few games when we have chased, I had to walk in with 60 runs and to get 60 runs in160 balls so that he makes our job a bit easier and all the rest of the team going forward,” KL Rahul added.
Team India has been clinical with their performance in the ODI World Cup after initial hiccups against the five-time champions Australia in a tricky chase in Chennai before Virat Kohli and KL Rahul bailed them out of the trouble to chase down comfortably and the Men in Blue would look to put up fine show going forward in the remaining game of the marquee event.