World Cup 2019: Cricket fraternity reacts as Rohit Sharma’s record-breaking ton seals India’s semi-final spot

Both India and Bangladesh had a lot at stake when they went head to head today (July 2) at Edgbaston. The Men in Blue wanted to seal their World Cup semi-final berth before the last game of the group stages, while Bangla Tigers wanted to lead the race to the semis. In the end, it was India whose wish was fulfilled, with a 28-run victory over their opponent.

When Bangladesh came out to bat, they were cautious in their approach. Things were looking under control until Tamim Iqbal jabbed one into the stumps. Soumya Sarkar and Shakib Al Hasan added stability to the innings, but the former hit one straight at Virat Kohli and threw away his wicket.

Since then, every Bangladeshi batsman, barring Mosaddek Hossain, got a good start. But none had the temperament to bat long and produce a match-winning knock. Shakib Al Hasan is an exception amongst an otherwise ordinary batting performance. The all-rounder tried his best with his 74-ball 66, but once he was gone, even the most optimistic of Bangladeshi fans considered the game to be over. The partnership between Sabbir Rahman and Mohammad Saifuddin was once looking intimidating, but Jasprit Bumrah put the final nail in Bangladesh’s coffin by dismissing the former.

Unlike the England match, India opted to play their shots from the very beginning against their neighbours. KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma built a 180-run partnership, with the latter shattering numerous records with his fourth ton in World Cup 2019.

At one stage, India were looking set for a 350+ plus, but Mustafizur Rahman brought Bangladesh back into the game. Rishabh Pant looked in good touch for his 41-ball 48, but things went a bit gloomy after his dismissal. Mahendra Singh Dhoni somehow carried the innings forward and India could only manage to put up 314.

For the umpteenth time, Rohit Sharma is the star of the match. His good run of form continued with a 92-ball 104. With this century, he became the first Indian to score four hundreds in a World Cup, and also the second batsman in the World. He is also just one hundred away from equaling Sachin Tendulkar’s record of 6 World Cup tons.

WEL done Indi for qualifying for Semis.. nice win today against a strong Bangladeshi team. 👏🏻👏🏻Still not my best Indian Team.. I want @imjadeja in my best XI #SelectDugout @StarSportsIndia

— Dean Jones (@ProfDeano) July 2, 2019

Bumrah is 24 Carat Gold. Best gets defined in a different fashion everyday. He’s just toooo good. #CWC19 #IndvBan

— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) July 2, 2019

If Reliable had a face.#IndvBan pic.twitter.com/dOO1yc77QB

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) July 2, 2019

Sixth consecutive event India has reached the semifinals.CT 2013 (Winner)WT20 2014 (Runners up)WC 2015 (Semifinal)WT20 2016 (Semifinal)CT 2017 (Runners up)WC 2019 (Semifinal) *#INDvBAN #CWC19

— Deepu Narayanan (@deeputalks) July 2, 2019

India thru to the semis. Stiff fight put up by B’desh but gr8 bowling by Bumrah again at the death. All said and done thiugh, how important was the life for Rohit at the start of the Indian innings? B’desh will rue that for a long, long time

— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) July 2, 2019

Quite the thriller, this one. A captivating game laced with a couple of high-quality knocks by our top order batsmen. Bowlers did their job well - picked wickets consistently and kept the pressure on. #INDVBAN #CWC19

— Suresh Raina🇮🇳 (@ImRaina) July 2, 2019

2015 WC: India knocked Bangladesh out of the tournament.2016 WT20: India knocked Bangladesh out of the tournament.2017 CT: India knocked Bangladesh out of the tournament.2019 WC: India knocked Bangladesh out of the tournament.

— Broken Cricket (@BrokenCricket) July 2, 2019

India in the #CWC semi-finals for the 7th time. 1983 - (W)1987 - (L)1996 - (L)2003 - (W)2011 - (W)2015 - (L)2019 - (?)Only Australia has made it to the SFs on more occasions (8)#CWC19#CWC2019#IndvBan#BanvInd

— Mohandas Menon (@mohanstatsman) July 2, 2019

Such a pleasure to be at the ground to see Rohit Sharma bat like this. Would have been even more fun if he had gone on.

— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) July 2, 2019

Congratulations India on a well deserved win and cementing a place in the semi-finals. Bumrah was superb in the end but have to admire @BCBtigers for the magnificent spirit and fight they showed in the end. #IndvBan

— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) July 2, 2019

Jasprit Bumrah is such a superstar. Terrific in the end. But have to complement Bangladesh on the fantastic fight and getting so close, especially after Shakib got out.Congratulations Team India #IndvBan

— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) July 2, 2019

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