Rohit is a great role model, and youngsters can learn a lot from his story: VVS Laxman

Former Indian batsman VVS Laxman heaped praise on Rohit Sharma after he scored his maiden overseas Test century at the Oval on Saturday. The Indian opener made his Test debut back in 2013 but had to wait eight long years to score a century in the format while playing outside India.

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Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, VVS Laxman applauded Rohit Sharma's phenomenal knock. He termed it "a great learning lesson for all the budding cricketers. Laxman said:

"It is a great example for the youngsters. You never stop learning. You never stop adapting. There is only one constant which is change. All the great players I played with and all the great players we are watching them play( and I believe Rohit Sharma is a great player) are always working on their game and always striving to improve only then can they achieve excellence. Rohit is a great role model, and it's a great story for the youngsters to learn from."

Over the years, he has had to cope with criticism from all corners and critics, who termed him a home track bully and bashed him for lacking a big Test knock outside India.

But Rohit Sharma gave a resounding reply to all those so-called 'cricket pundits' with an astonishing century in the fourth Test against England and provided India a solid platform in the match.

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"Rohit knows he will be recognized as a great player only if his performances in Test match cricket match his performance in white-ball cricket" - VVS Laxman

VVS Laxman then continued to speak about the importance of maintaining uniform performance levels in all three international cricket formats for a player to achieve greatness. In this regard, Laxman said:

"All the cricketers I speak to and talk to, even now they feel they want to prove themselves in Test match format. Even this generation of players, someone like Rohit Sharma, is an exceptional leader, has won the IPL for Mumbai Indians probably four times, and has achieved all the success in white-ball cricket, whether T20 cricket or ODI cricket."

"But for him also, he knows that at the end of his career, when he hangs up his boots, he will be recognized as a great player if his performances in Test match cricket match his performance in white-ball cricket. That's the case with a lot of cricketers I interact with. That's why players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Kane Williamson, and Joe Root all of them are role models."

At stumps on day 3, India had 270/3 on the scoreboard with Virat Kohli (22*) and Ravindra Jadeja (9*) at the crease.