"One of the greatest ODI innings" - Sanjay Manjrekar lauds Rohit Sharma's knock in India's 2023 World Cup win vs England

Sanjay Manjrekar reckons Rohit Sharma's half-century in India's 2023 World Cup clash against England is one of the greatest ODI innings.

Rohit scored 87 runs off 101 deliveries as the Men in Blue set the defending champions a 230-run target in Lucknow on Sunday, October 29. The hosts then bowled out Jos Buttler and company for 129 to register an emphatic 100-run win and climb atop the points table.

During a discussion on Star Sports, Manjrekar was asked about his thoughts on Rohit's knock, to which he responded:

"When we talk about Rohit Sharma's ODI batting and his greatness, we talk about the three double hundreds, and he scored a quick hundred recently as well. But according to me, this knock is one of the greatest ODI innings."

The former India batter pointed out that his fellow Mumbaikar delivered the goods in trying circumstances. He explained:

"There are two or three reasons for that - the pitch was slightly tricky in the afternoon, the bowling challenge was quite good, the tactics Jos Buttler used were also high quality, and India were under pressure."

India were reduced to 40/3 in 11.5 overs after being asked to bat first. Rohit then added 91 runs with KL Rahul (39 off 58) for the fourth wicket before Suryakumar Yadav scored a 47-ball 49 to take the two-time champions to a defendable score.

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"This artistry sets Rohit Sharma apart" - Sanjay Manjrekar on the opener's exquisite shots

Rohit Sharma struck 10 fours and three sixes during his innings. [P/C: AP]

Sanjay Manjrekar was particularly appreciative of Rohit Sharma's strokeplay against the England spinners. He elaborated:

"You might remember a shot he played, I think off Adil Rashid's bowling, it was an extremely small gap, and he hit a drive with power to find the boundary. Then he hit Moeen Ali over mid-off against the turn. This artistry sets Rohit Sharma apart."

The cricketer-turned-commentator believes India are head and shoulders above the rest of the sides. He said:

"It's not only Rohit, six or seven Indian players are at their peak. We talk about generation gap but nowadays there is a huge gap between India's cricket and the other teams' cricket."

Manjrekar pointed out that among opening batters, Rohit is right at the top considering the range of his shots, although he might not be the top run-getter. He added that none of the other seamers at the World Cup are coming even close to Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami.