"Short knock but attacking and valuable" - Aakash Chopra on Rohit Sharma's innings on Day 1 of 2nd IND vs SA Test

Aakash Chopra has lauded Rohit Sharma, along with Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli, for playing invaluable knocks in India's first innings of the ongoing second Test against South Africa.

Rohit scored 39 runs off 50 deliveries in India's 153-run total in Cape Town on Wednesday, January 3. The visitors earlier bundled out the Proteas for a paltry 55 in their first innings and then reduced them to 62/3 in their second essay.

Reflecting on India's batting in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra praised Rohit, Gill and Kohli for playing crucial knocks. He explained (3:40):

"Rohit Sharma - short knock but attacking and valuable. Valuable runs because too many runs are not being scored in this match. So the 35 to 45 runs become very important, and that includes Rohit, Gill and Kohli."

While opining that Kohli looked the most comfortable in the middle, Chopra highlighted that variable bounce and sideways movement were bound to claim wickets. He said:

"Kohli, I think, batted the best. If you will leave aside the first shot, which was streaky, he batted extremely well after that. Shubman Gill was looking good but the ball is doing a lot here - extra bounce, sideways movement, and sometimes the ball stays low."

Kohli scored 46 runs off 59 deliveries before he was the eighth wicket to fall. Gill contributed 36 runs off 55 balls and added 55 runs for the second wicket with Rohit after Yashasvi Jaiswal was dismissed for a duck.

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"It triggered a collapse that has never happened in Test cricket" - Aakash Chopra on KL Rahul's dismissal

KL Rahul was caught behind off Lungi Ngidi's bowling. [P/C: Getty]

Aakash Chopra pointed out that KL Rahul's dismissal triggered a dramatic collapse. He observed (4:20):

"When Lungi Ngidi came in his second spell, KL Rahul's wicket, tennis-ball bounce, maybe a loose shot as well. It triggered a collapse that has never happened in Test cricket. India lost six wickets for zero runs - 153/4 to 153 all out."

Chopra reckons Yashasvi Jaiswal's big hundred in the West Indies might get him a longer run at the top of the order despite his three failures against South Africa. He elaborated (3:10):

"We had spoken about Yashasvi in the West Indies as well, that when you get a debut like that, make the most of it, because he was going to get South Africa at the end of the year and early in the following year, and runs wouldn't get scored easily, and they haven't been scored."

The cricketer-turned-commentator added:

"17, 5 and 0 are his three scores thus far in the series and the next innings is also not going to be easy. So he might get a long rope because he scored close to 175 runs in the first match."

Jaiswal amassed 266 runs, including a 171-run knock on debut, at an average of 88.67 in three innings against the West Indies. He has managed only 22 runs in his three hits in the ongoing series but is likely to retain his place as an opener for the start of India's upcoming five-Test home series against England.