Rohit Sharma sets records with 73 against Australia in Adelaide
What's the story
Indian opener Rohit Sharma defied the odds to score a fine 73 (97) against Australia in the 2nd ODI at Adelaide Oval. Rohit, who was perturbed by the Aussie seamers, showed his class eventually. He added a 118-run stand with Shreyas Iyer after India, being invited to bat, were in a spot of bother. They lost Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli within seven overs.
Resistance
Rohit shows resistance in tough first hour
As mentioned, the Australian seamers were all over India in the first 10 overs. They perfectly exploited the moisture around the pitch, moving the ball viciously. While Gill and Kohli succumbed to seam movement, Rohit was tied up at one end by the Australians. The latter was batting at 19 off 43 balls after 10 overs. He was also lucky on several occasions.
Knock
Rohit departs for 73
Rohit, who dealt in singles, was finally relieved with the introduction of Mitchell Owen. The former Indian captain struck him for 2 sixes in 3 balls in the 19th over. He completed his half-century in the 22nd over. Rohit, who finally found his feet after taking India past 100, fell to Mitchell Starc. His 73-run knock had 7 fours and 2 sixes.
Milestone
Rohit reaches this landmark
During his knock, Rohit completed 1,000 runs against Australia Down Under, becoming the first Indian to do so. In 21 ODIs against Australia, Rohit now has 1,071 runs at an incredible average of 56.36 in Australia. His tally includes 4 tons and 3 half-centuries. Notably, Kohli is the only other Indian with 800-plus runs (802) against the Aussies Down Under.
Opener
Rohit goes past Sourav Ganguly
Earlier, Rohit also surpassed the legendary Sourav Ganguly in terms of ODI runs as an opener among Indian players. The latter retired with 9146 runs while opening for India in ODIs. Rohit now has the second-most ODI runs for India as an opener, only behind the great Sachin Tendulkar (15,310). The former owns 9,219 runs from just 188 ODIs as an opener at 54.55.