On this day Rohit Sharma became the only player to hit 3 double centuries with his magnificent double ton against Sri Lanka at Mohali. This series was his first captaincy assignment in international cricket and India lost the first match of the series at Dharamshala which made this match a must-win game. Captain Rohit Sharma led from the front to attack the Sri Lankan bowlers and stamp his authority.
A Steady Start
The Sri Lankan skipper Thisara Perera won the toss and invited India to bat first as he wanted to take advantage of an early morning start. But the opening pair of Rohit and Shikhar denied that early advantage with a solid opening partnership to add 115 runs on the board for the first wicket. At No.3 Shreyas Iyer walked into bat and he was equally impressive and complemented the Indian skipper with his quickfire innings. Rohit Sharma’s start was very cautious and he steadily progressed to complete his century in the 40th over.
An Absolute Carnage from the Indian Skipper
After getting his mojo back and completing the century, Rohit Sharma unlocked a different level of destruction which completely obliterated the Sri Lankan bowling lineup. He took every opposition bowler on remand and hit them in every corner of the park to put them on the back foot. Shreyas Iyer also assisted his captain in that destruction and made it very difficult for the Sri Lankans to stick to the right line and length. Rohit went on to complete his historic 3rd double-century in the very last phase of the Indian innings and remained unbeaten till the very last ball of the first innings.
Eventually, India won the match by a huge margin of 141 runs, and the Indian skipper was adjudged the player of the match for his extraordinary batting performance. This inning from Rohit was the perfect example of what can happen if you stay on the crease even if it is not coming off the middle of your bat.