Rohit Sharma is delighted after bringing up his third double century
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
India stand-in captain Rohit Sharma led by example as he smashed an unbeaten 208 to not only help his side crush Sri Lanka by 141 runs in the second ODI in Mohali, but level the three-match series at 1-1.
Rohit now has three double hundreds to his name in ODI cricket, while the other four players to have accomplished the feat have done it only once in their careers.
Being put in to bat first, Rohit and Shikhar Dhawan took the attack to Sri Lanka from the get-go and ended up amassing a 115-run partnership, during which Dhawan surpassed his half-century.
However, just as everything was going swimmingly for India, Dhawan was dismissed by Sachith Pathirana for 68 off 67 balls, which included nine boundaries.
Shikhar Dhawan scored his 23rd ODI fifty
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Despite the loss of Dhawan, India kept the scoreboard ticking as Rohit and Shreyas Iyer put together a 213-run stand, during which Rohit sailed past his hundred, while Iyer registered his fifty.
With India on track for a mammoth total, Sri Lanka finally got their next breakthrough in the 46th over when Iyer was removed by Sri Lanka’s stand-in captain Thisara Perera for 88, which came off 70 deliveries and included nine boundaries and two sixes.
Shreyas Iyer made his highest ODI score
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Even though Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Hardik Pandya were sent packing for seven and eight runs respectively, Rohit finished unbeaten on 208 off 153 balls, which included 13 boundaries and 12 sixes, to help India score 392/4 off their 50 overs.
Thisara was the pick of the bowlers with three wickets, while Pathirana chipped in with one.
Chasing 393 to win, Sri Lanka got off to a horrible start as openers Upul Tharanga and Danushka Gunathilaka were dismissed by Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah for seven and 16 respectively.
Things went from bad to worse when Lahiru Thirimanne was clean bowled by debutant Washington Sundar for 21.
Angelo Mathews and wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella halted India’s charge with a 53-run partnership before Dickwella was sent packing by Yuzvendra Chahal for 22.
While Mathews continued to fight on, he received little to no support from the rest of the batting line-up. As a result, the tourists were only able to finish on 251/8 off their 50 overs.
Despite having lost, Mathews deserves a lot of credit for his gutsy innings of 111 not out, which came off 132 deliveries and included nine boundaries and three sixes.
Chahal was the most successful bowler with three wickets, while Bumrah took two and Sundar, Pandya and Bhuvneshwar Kumar claimed one wicket each.
Thisara was disappointed with his side’s performance, and said: “Unfortunately our bowling didn’t click. Especially Rohit batted really well. That is cricket. We will take positives from this match and flush out the negatives. We had a Plan A and B and C as well – it didn’t click. That’s why I said Rohit batted really well.
“If we want to chase this kind of score, we need a good start, and middle order as well. Both parts didn’t click, but Angelo did well in the batting part. We will come back well in the third ODI.”
Rohit, who was named Man of the Match, was thrilled to have kept India’s hopes of winning the series alive, and said: “It was a great day. Winning the game was important for me and the team after that loss in Dharamsala. I can keep talking about the batting that we did today, right from the start, with Shikhar giving us a brilliant start, and Shreyas Iyer – it didn’t look like he was only playing his second ODI.
“There was dew later, so it was important to get that big total. If I’m not wrong, the first 100 I got was around the 38th, 39th over, so I was telling myself, if I get that far, I’m not going to get out. I was only looking to keep my shape and hit through the line. It was the same thing I did in my first two 200s. I started off pretty slow then too.
“Very difficult to pick one. All three came at crucial times. 264 is obviously very close to me. I’ve said it many times, but I honestly cannot pick one. The Australia one was a decider, the Sri Lanka 264 – I came back after a three-month layoff after a big injury, and this one also – after a humiliating loss, we wanted to come back as a team, as a batting unit especially.
“I’m happy [my wife] is here with me on this special day. I know she would have liked this gift from me. She’s been my strength, she’s always been there for me. You go through so much stress in this sport, and having them around is always special. This is our second anniversary, but more than that, we won the game. We were determined to do the right things in the middle, and right till the end we did that. As a group we’re looking forward to [Vizag].
“The conditions will be different, and again we have to adapt and play to our strengths. Not the ideal conditions for [Washington] to bowl, but this is how he will learn. He showed promise, and he has shown it before too, in the IPL. We want to back young players like Washington, we don’t want to put too much pressure on them. I’m sure he must have learned a lot from this game, bowling with the wet ball and so on, and I wish him all the luck.”