- Thursday, April 25, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
India captain Rohit Sharma led from the front to slam a century — his ninth in the format — in the first Test against Australia at Vidharbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur, where he was born, on Friday (10). It was his first ton against Australian in Tests.
The Test hundred, which Sharma scored after a gap of almost a year and half, also created a piece of history as he became the first India captain to register a triple-digit individual score in all three formats of the game. Pakistan’s Babar Azam, South Africa’s Faf du Plessis and Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan have already been members of the exclusive club.
The happiness on the face of Rohit Sharma after reaching his century!
An innings to remember. pic.twitter.com/l8JrbeCrHT
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) February 10, 2023
Sharma, who remained unbeaten on 56 off 69 balls at stumps on the inaugural day, continued with his superb touch and completed his century in 171 balls as his partners departed quickly.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri praised Sharma’s knock saying, “When Rohit Sharma batting, he won’t allow any bowler to settle. His form can dictate terms in this BGT, not just because of the runs he’ll get, but the pace at which he gets it. His record as an opening batsman is stunning.”
Australia off-spinner Todd Murphy, who made his international debut in the game, ran through the Indian middle order by picking four wickets, including those of Rahul (20), Cheteshwar Pujara (7) and Virat Kohli (12) while senior spinner Nathan Lyon dismissed Test debutant Suryakumar Yadav for eight.
It was then when Ravindra Jadeja, who picked five wickets on the first day, joined Sharma and added more than 50 runs with his captain for the sixth wicket to take India beyond Australia’s total. India were 226 for 5 at tea on Day 2 of the Test, leading Australia by 49 runs.
