How India banked on Rohit-Kohli pair in Test cricket
What's the story
In a surprising turn of events, Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from Test cricket on May 7.
The veteran batter bowed out after featuring for India for more than a decade.
Rohit powered India to several Test victories along with his compatriot Virat Kohli. Both Rohit and Kohli excelled in each other's captaincy in the format.
Here's how India banked on the dynamic duo.
Wins
Rohit, Kohli part of 31 Test wins
Both Rohit and Kohli took charge in what turned out to be India's golden period of Test cricket.
Between 2013 and 2024, India won 31 of 60 Tests involving both Rohit and Kohli. While the side lost 19 Tests, 10 matches ended in a draw.
At home, India won 22 of 29 Tests with the duo in the Playing XI.
Captaincy
India's most successful captain
As per ESPNcricinfo, Kohli was India's most successful captain in this period. He led India to 21 wins in 33 Tests with Rohit by his side.
The two legends also played together under MS Dhoni's leadership between 2013 and 2014.
Meanwhile, Rohit took over from Kohli in 2021. In 19 Tests, he led India to eight wins along with Kohli.
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Honor of playing two WTC finals
In 2021, Kohli led India to the first-ever ICC World Test Championship final. A star-studded Indian side with both Kohli and Rohit lost to New Zealand. Two years later, Team India lost the WTC final to Australia, this time under Rohit.
Runs
How the two fared with bat
Between 2013 and 2024, Kohli racked up 4,595 runs at an average of 47.37 in Tests involving Rohit. The latter slammed 3,772 runs at 40.55 in those matches.
The two veteran batters have 24 hundreds between them (14 by Kohli).
As per ESPNcricinfo, only two other Indians scored more than 2,000 runs in Tests with both Kohli and Rohit.
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Over 4,600 runs in winning cause
Rohit and Kohli tallied 4,690 runs between them in winning cause (31 Tests). The former has a higher average (60.39) than Kohli (44.53) in this regard. Rohit hammered 10 tons in Tests won involving Kohli.
Opening
Rohit's exploits as opener
In 2019, Rohit was promoted as India's Test opener by Kohli. The former later emerged as India's mainstay opener in the format, with consistent performances.
Rohit hammered nine of his Test tons as an opener. As per ESPNcricinfo, he owns the most centuries as an opener in the format since October 2019.