Hyderabad: With the T20I series win against Australia, Rohit Sharma maintained his perfect record as captain in the shortest format. India are yet to lose a T20I series under his stewardship.
After suffering a 4-wicket loss in Mohali in the series opener, India bounced back with a 6-wicket win in the rain-curtailed second T20I in Nagpur. The series-decider, in Hyderabad, also went down the wire with India completing the 187-run chase with only a ball left.
India have now won 33 of 42 T20I matches under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy. The 35-year-old opener has now become India’s second-most successful skipper in the shortest format at the international level.
In an exclusive interview with Firstpost, former New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson, who has seen Rohit Sharma from close quarters in the Mumbai Indians camp, praised the ‘hitman’ for his captaincy.
“I think he’s a great captain. He is extremely bright in the way he does things and reads the game very well. Rohit is one of the best players in the world, he is one of the best players to play for India as well. So, anyone who is playing alongside Rohit will back him and loves to play with him,” Anderson said.
“I think, he does a lot of work in the background to understand required plans whether it’s bowling or batting and he executes those plans in the field. So, Rohit has been a big reason behind Mumbai Indians winning a lot of competitions and titles and he has contributed not only as a batter but as a captain as well,” he added.
When asked if he, while playing for Mumbai Indians, ever thought Rohit can lead India someday, Anderson said: “Hard to say. I mean it’s one of those things about which you never really think too much. But Rohit has got a lot of experience of playing in the Indian team, he’s got the experience of playing anywhere in the world. So, I always thought that if Rohit is given the opportunity to lead India, he will do well and he is indeed doing a fantastic job.”
Sharma has now surpassed Virat Kohli’s tally of 32 T20I wins as Team India captain to become India’s second-most successful T20I captain.
Leading the list is MS Dhoni who captained India to 42 T20I wins out of 72 played.
Rohit’s next assignment as India captain will be to take on South Africa at home in a three-match T20I series, which is scheduled to begin on 28 September.
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