Asia Cup 2018: Captaincy Would Make Rohit Sharma Better - Sunil Gavaskar

Former India skipper, Sunil Gavaskar believes the extra responsibility of leading India in the ongoing Asia Cup 2018 has made Rohit Sharma a better batsman.

Rohit Sharma has done exceedingly well as captain in the absence of regular skipper Virat Kohli in the Asia Cup 2018. After an unusual start that saw India labouring to a 26-run win over Hong Kong, the Men in Blue proved their title-credentials with two thumping wins over Pakistan and Bangladesh, respectively.

Sharma rotated his bowlers brilliantly against Pakistan and Bangladesh. As a result, both the teams failed to score a challenging total. While Pakistan managed just 162, Bangladesh was all out for 173. Rohit then led with the bat, scoring 52 against Pakistan and 83 not out against Bangladesh to guide his team to impressive wins.

The three wins have extended Rohit’s impressive record, as India skipper. He has led India in nine T20Is and six ODIs so far and has lost just one ODI and one T20I.

His record as batsman in those games has also been excellent. He averages an excellent 55.46 with two centuries as an India skipper.

And Sunil Gavaskar is mighty impressed with Rohit’s captaincy.

“The first time he led Mumbai Indians to an IPL win, that was his first season as a captain. And he impressed straight away with his knowledge of what to do next more than what to plan,” Gavaskar told India Today. “I think the planning takes place inside the dressing room. But that plan can actually go awry. And for that, you need a captain to take on the spot decisions.

“Over here [Asia Cup] as well, every time he has got an opportunity to captain India, he has shown his acumen, and he has shown how patient he can be and then as a batsman, the added responsibility, only makes him better,” he added.

Rohit Sharma will be hoping India to win the upcoming game against Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2018. The defending champions will take on the arch-rivals in their second game of the Super Four stage on Sunday.