IND vs AUS: 'Rohit Sharma Is Not Celebrated Enough As A Test Opener' - Dinesh Karthik

Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri had already stated that Rohit Sharma‘s performance will determine the destiny of the prestigious Border-Gavaskar Trophy before the seasoned opener provided Australia with a timely lesson on how to bat on a turning pitch. Veteran wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik is certain that all-format skipper Rohit Sharma is a world-class hitter in the contemporary era, just as former Indian all-rounder Shastri.

Rohit Sharma was elevated to the Test opener position in 2019. In white-ball forms, Rohit is a living nightmare for elite bowlers. As an opener in red-ball cricket since resuming his Test career during the South Africa series, Rohit has lived up to the moniker “Hitman.” Despite the fact that injuries have limited his time as Test captain, Rohit has stayed committed to leading India’s top order.

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Rohit Sharma One Of The Best Across Formats: Dinesh Karthik

In the opening game of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series at Nagpur, the veteran batsman blasted his first Test century while serving as captain. The star opener’s incredible batting record in India was noted by Indian wicketkeeper Karthik in his analysis of Rohit’s batting masterpiece in Nagpur. Rohit ranks second among opening batters in terms of batting average when playing the longest format. The Indian captain (57.65) narrowly falls short of Herbert Sutcliffe’s 61.10 average over 83 innings.

“There is no doubt about that, I think he is a world-class batsman. He is arguably one of the best batsmen across formats that have played for the country. He recently with his hundred goes on to become the 1st Indian captain to score a hundred in all formats. His record in India is upwards of 75 which is a phenomenal average to have.

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And the moment he shifted from being a middle-order batsman to an opener in white-ball cricket, things changed dramatically and in Test cricket, the landscape of what he has become as a batsman has changed phenomenally,” Karthik told Cricbuzz.

Dinesh Karthik Lauds Indian Skipper

Rohit Sharma scored his ninth century in red-ball cricket at Nagpur, where he made his fourth Test appearance as India’s captain. The 35-year-old also made history by becoming the first Indian captain to score hundreds in every format. In the Nagpur Test on Saturday, Team India’s Rohit top-scored with a superb effort of 120 off 212 balls as the hosts smashed Australia by 132 runs.

“You can see, he enjoys batting. He relishes the opportunity to bat fast bowlers first up and then go on to play spinners. He is someone who is very special to India and I sometimes feel, he is not celebrated enough as a Test opener. He has got a lot of credentials in white-ball format. People speak about his accolades in the white-ball format. But as a Test opener, he has been really good in the limited time that he has done it,” Karthik added.

The Indian captain has a remarkable average of 75.2, which ranks second among all players (with at least 30 innings) in domestic Test cricket. Only the great Don Bradman had a higher average at home than Rohit (98.22 in 50 innings). In 21 home Test matches, the seasoned batsman has scored eight hundreds and six half-centuries. Rohit, who is in good form, has scored 3257 runs for India in 46 Test matches. In the second Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which will be played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Friday, the daring batter will captain India.

Also Read: IND vs AUS: Dinesh Karthik Ridicules Australian Media For Its Fixation With Ravichandran Ashwin 

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