The series’ last game saw Rohit Sharma smash his fifth Twenty20 International century against Afghanistan.
The first two games of the series against Afghanistan had been the hardest possible for Rohit Sharma to play at bat. He went out for a duck in Mohali following a disastrous mix-up with Shubman Gill, while Fazalhaq Farooqui sent him packing with the first ball in Indore. Understandably, the Indian skipper attracted a lot of attention when, in contrast to his previous two T20I decisions, he chose to bat in the last match in Bengaluru. And what a choice that proved to be. In addition to brushing the monkey from his back, Rohit made history by hitting a fast century off of just 64 balls. Rohit passed Mumbai Indians and India colleague Suryakumar Yadav in the process.
suffered their worst Powerplay performance of the series, losing four wickets for a duck, including star batsman Virat Kohli and Sanju Samson. But Rohit rose to the occasion with remarkable fortitude, leading the innings with Rinku Singh (69*), who proved he was more than just a finisher.
After a string of early disappointments, Rohit tried to go slowly while Rinku, a striker by nature, constantly took care of the boundaries. As the two started to absorb pressure, part of it was directed back into Afghanistan. Although Rohit’s batting was not fluid, he persevered and reached his fifty off just 41 balls. But after making a smart gear change, Rohit’s next fifty deliveries came off in just 22 balls. With a fantastic strike rate of 175.36, Rohit hammered 11 fours and eight sixes before finishing unbeaten on 121 off 69 balls.
With this innings, Rohit wrote the longest history in the least amount of time. The most recent list of centuries in T20Is is as follows:
– Rohit Sharma (India) – 5
– Suryakumar Yadav (India) – 4
– Glenn Maxwell (Australia) – 4
In T20Is, Rohit also surpassed former England captain Eoin Morgan for the record for most sixes by a captain. Morgan finished his career with 86 sixes in T20Is, compared to the Indian opener’s current 87.
Rohit also held the record for the most runs scored by an Indian skipper in Twenty20 Internationals. He now has 1647 runs, surpassing former skipper Virat Kohli (1570) on this ranking.
– Rohit Sharma – 1647 runs
– Virat Kohli – 1570 runs
– MS Dhoni – 1112 runs
With 121, Rohit is still undefeated and has amassed the fourth-highest score by an Indian in a single T20I innings.
