World Cup 2023: He is a great timer of the ball – Cheteshwar Pujara on Rohit Sharma’s match-winning knock vs. England

India’s Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara lauded Rohit Sharma’s match-winning knock of 87 runs against England at the Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow on Sunday. The Indian skipper played a key role in helping his team post a fighting score of 229 runs after they were put into bat by Jos Buttler.

India lost three early wickets of Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, and Shreyas Iyer as England bowlers were all over the hosts. However, Rohit Sharma brought his Test game to the fore as he stitched a crucial alliance of 91 runs with KL Rahul, who scored 39.

Rohit scored 10 fours and three maximums as he batted at his absolute best before getting dismissed while trying to take the attack against Adil Rashid. Once again, Rohit’s timing was exclusive and he continued his purple patch. The talisman has scored 398 runs in six matches at an average of 66.33 and a strike rate of 119.16 in the ongoing World Cup 2023.

“If you look at his stats, I know he wants to go hard at the bowlers and play his shots. But the kind of shots that he’s playing, he isn’t trying to hit the ball too hard and he’s a great timer of the cricket ball,” said Pujara on ESPN Cricinfo.

Pujara added that Rohit Sharma has the right chemistry with Shubman Gill at the top of the order.

“He knows his approach. He knows how to bat in the powerplay. It’s not just him but he has clarity with his partners as well. The way Shubman is batting, they complement each other and there’s a clear message in the team as well,” Pujara added.

Rohit is taking the bull by its horns and he has played a key role in the team’s success. The Indian skipper has been leading from the front and would want to carry the same.

On the other hand, Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah were brilliant for the home team bagging four and three wickets respectively to skittle out England at 129.

India will next take on Sri Lanka at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Thursday.