Rising over ridicule: 'Ro-hit'ting it in style

Rohit Sharma is finally coming good for India

Consistent production of a string of low scores, a noticeably ‘casual’ approach towards the game, an annoying habit of throwing his wicket away and the recurring glimpses of his inability (or unwillingness) to take responsibility had had the Indian audiences frustrated (for quite some time).

Innumerable questions were being raised about the classy right-handed batsman’s selection/position/role in the Indian team.

The presence of Dinesh Karthik, Robin Uthappa, Ajinkya Rahane, Manoj Tiwary, Yusuf Pathan, Abhishek Nayar and Subramaniam Badrinath (as India’s bench strength) pushing for a place in the limited overs side made it furthermore difficult for him to cement his slot.

And whenever he was included in the playing XI, the presence of heavyweights like Sehwag, Gambhir, Yuvraj and Tendulkar never gave him a chance to try his luck at the top of the order.

The entire universe agreed to the fact that Rohit Sharma was one of the best fielders in India, apart from being technically correct and possessing the (rare) ability to play ‘elegantly aggressive’ strokes off the front, as well as the back foot.

He had a solid domestic record to back this up, along with commendable knocks in the Indian Premier League. But the lingering issue was that he was unable to convert his 20s and 30s into big scores at the international level. While his abilities were rarely doubted, his approach, temperament and attitude were the real concerns.

Yet, he managed to stick around. The selectors and the coaches persisted with him. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, I assume, had immense faith in him.

Being the ‘instinctive leader’ that he is, when Dhoni feels that a player can do wonders, he makes it a point to provide him with ample opportunities and exposure, in order to tap his abilities.

It is evident with players like Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, whom the Indian skipper has a lot of belief in. It is this prolonged stint in the Indian team, followed by a sudden promotion (up the order), that saw Rohit reveal his true colours. And these colours are now painting a glossy picture!

The departure of Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Sachin Tendulkar, clubbed together with Murali Vijay’s pathetic performance in ODIs, meant that there were vacant slots in the Indian outfit up for grabs. And guess who made the most of it. No points for guessing that one – Rohit Sharma.

An opportunity (up the order) empowered him to take control of the game from ball one. It allowed him to take his time to settle down in the middle. It gave him the freedom to read and interpret the game and construct the innings, the way he wanted to.

What critics didn’t take into account was the fact that for a good part of his career so far, Rohit has batted way down the order. Coming in with only a couple of overs remaining, one can’t expect a lower middle order batsman to maintain an average of 40+.

Yes, there are some incredible ‘superhumans’ who have managed to do that (read: Michael Bevan, Michael Hussey, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and a few others), but Rohit Sharma has always been much more than just a ‘finisher’.

It took some time for things to fall into place, but eventually, they did. India is going through the best of patches, with the batting order looking daunting and the fielding looking better than it ever was.

The young guns are delivering consistently. The opening woes of Indian cricket seem to have been sorted out, with Shikhar Dhawan making a grand comeback into the side with a chain of audacious, fearless knocks against some of the best oppositions in world cricket.

And he has found an able partner in Rohit Sharma, the man who can face swing, seam and spin with equal ease; and take the attack to the opposition when the bowlers are least expecting it. The ICC Champions Trophy was taken by storm by these two, as they made a mockery of some of the best bowling attacks in the world (in English conditions, mind you).

Dhawan and Rohit at the top have been sensational for India

Yesterday’s Man of the Match performance (141* off 123 deliveries) against Australia saw Sharma playing the ‘ideal’ innings, and as he himself admitted in the post-match presentation ceremony, India would like to see him do that consistently.

Centuries aren’t important. A century in a winning cause is what counts, when/if you look at the bigger picture.

His overall strike rate has dropped a tad since he started opening the batting for India, but with his average moving upwards and with the number of runs he has scored in the last five months, no one is complaining. And with age on his side (he is just 25), Rohit has all the time in the world to get his statistics up and running.

With an eye on the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, I believe this (the promotion of Rohit Sharma in the batting order) is a fantastic move by the skipper/coach/management and will continue to yield brilliant outputs in the near future.