15 years of ‘Hitman’: Rohit Sharma’s Top five innings in international cricket

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Rohit Sharma, who is undoubtedly one of the greats of Indian cricket has completed 15 years in international cricket. On June 23, 2007, a young Rohit Sharma began his international career in an ODI against Ireland. Since then, Rohit has developed into one of the best openers of all time. Rohit is one of the sweetest timers of the ball and is often hailed for his lazy elegance. In his 15-year tenure, he has played some majestic innings, with the majority of them coming after he was promoted as an opener in 2013 by MS Dhoni. Let’s have a look at the Hitman’s top five innings in his career so far. 

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Here are Rohit Sharma’s top five knocks in International cricket

1. 209 vs Australia, Bengaluru 2013

Rohit Sharma is the only cricketer on the planet to score three double hundred and the first double hundred is always special. Rohit was promoted as an opener in 2013 and the right-hander displayed an instant impact. In the decider match against Australia at the M Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore, Sharma notched up his first double ton. The Hitman scored a breathtaking 209 off 158 balls which included 12 fours and 16 maximums. India went on to score 383 and eventually won the match by 57 runs and the series by a 3-2 margin.

2. 176 and 127 vs South Africa, Visakhapatnam 2019

By 2019, Rohit Sharma had established himself as a formidable opener in white-ball cricket. But he was yet to prove himself in Test cricket. Sharma was given the opening role for the first time in red-ball cricket in 2019 against South Africa and the right-hander delivered instantly. In his first innings as a Test opener, Rohit scored a magnificent 176 and powered India’s score to 502. He did not stop there as in the second innings, he scored another hundred at a quick pace to give South Africa a steep target and ample time for Indian bowlers to wrap the African batting lineup. In the end, India won the game by 203 runs.

3. 140 vs Pakistan, Manchester 2019

A World Cup game between India and Pakistan arguably is a more pressure game than the final itself. In 2019, India and Pakistan faced off for the seventh time in World Cups. The Indian team was looking to keep their unbeaten record against Pakistan. In pressure games, teams want their experienced players to step up. And Rohit Sharma did exactly that.

The Mumbai-born took the Pakistani bowlers to the cleaners as he scored 140 off just 113 balls which included 14 fours and 3 sixes. Rohit’s innings put the Indian team in the driver’s seat as they set a mammoth total of 337. Eventually, India won the contest by 89 runs and kept their unbeaten streak alive.

2. 264 vs Sri Lanka, Kolkata 2014

Sri Lanka toured India for a five-match series in November 2014 and that series will always be remembered for Rohit Sharma’s blistering knock in the fourth ODI. Rohit was making a comeback from an injury he sustained during the England tour. Early in the match, Thisara Perera dropped Rohit Sharma. That drop proved to be more than just costly as Rohit went on to score the highest individual score ever recorded in an ODI game. The Indian skipper scored a record-shattering 264 which included 33 fours and 9 sixes.

To say that he took the Sri Lankan bowlers to the cleaners would be an understatement. In the game, Sri Lanka was not able to cross Rohit’s individual runs as they could manage only 251 runs. Rohit’s record still stays intact even in the age where pitches are and rules are batting friendly.

1. 127 vs England, Oval 2021

Rohit Sharma was scoring heaps of runs in Test cricket when he was promoted as an opener. However, a major criticism he faced in his Test career was that most of those runs were scored in Indian conditions. Rohit was yet to prove himself in overseas conditions. He had the best chance to prove his critics wrong in the England tour of 2021 and he did exactly that. Rohit is currently the second-highest run-scorer in the series and his best knock came in the fourth Test at the Oval.

The Indian team was reeling behind as England had a lead of over 90 runs. In such a pressure situation, Rohit played his best Test knock and scored his first overseas ton. Hitman scored the runs when India was pushed to the back seat and in tough English conditions. This made the century more valuable. Rohit’s knock of 127 guided India to 466 as the visitors set a tough total for the Englishmen. In the end, India won the game by 157 runs and is leading the series by 2-1. For the first time in 15 years, India will not lose a test series in England and Rohit played a major role in this achievement.

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