Year in Review: Top ten batsmen in One Day Internationals in 2013

3. Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma – Fulfilling his potential at last

Sometimes, all you need is a change in your mindset (and a move to the opener’s slot) in order to achieve your dreams. This is exactly what Rohit Gurunath Sharma has done, though he suffered six years of constant criticism from all and sundry (including myself).

Fitness issues, which had dogged him for long, have been finally put to rest. The promotion to opener has done wonders for his career – he was one of the prolific scorers in the final edition of the Champions Trophy, and struck a purple patch not long after.

Rohit represents the new breed of Indian cricketers – young, hungry, and stubborn – who play the game on their own terms. Along with Virat Kohli, he has emerged as one of the mainstays in the Indian batting line-up, providing it with a stability that was missing since the ouster of both Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir owing to poor form.

His unbeaten 141 at Jaipur was deemed to be his finest innings till date, until he did one better by scoring only the third double century in ODI cricket against the Australian attack. His knock was laced with plenty of boundaries and sixes, each more sublime than the last.

His only challenge now is to cement his place in both the ODI and Test squads, for which he needs to be consistent. Let’s hope Father Christmas puts that gift in his stocking soon!