NEWS
Follow UsComing into the 2024 T20 World Cup, a lot was expected of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli but the two experienced batters have been a massive disappointment for India. The two openers have scored 105 runs between them in four games at a terrible average of 15.
The Men in Blue made the bold decision to leave out Yashasvi Jaiswal and open with Rohit and Kohli in the 20-over showpiece event, but the decision is yet to yield results. As an opening pair in this competition, the two are averaging 11.5 and have a strike rate of 104.5.
22 vs Ireland, 12 vs Pakistan, 1 vs USA and 11 vs Afghanistan - Rohit and Kohli have the fifth-worst average among pairs who have opened together in at least three innings in the ongoing World Cup.
Kohli has scored 29 runs at an average of 7.25, while Rohit has 76 runs @ 25.33 and a strike rate of 111.76, with 52 of his runs coming in one innings against Ireland in New York.
India played all of their group games (the match against Canada in Dallas was washed out) in New York, where the surface was extremely difficult for batting. They moved to Barbados for their first Super 8 encounter against Afghanistan, but the change of venue didn’t change Rohit and Kohli's fortunes.
Opting to bat first on a slow Kensington Oval pitch on Thursday (June 20), Rohit and Kohli were up against the tournament’s leading wicket-taker Fazalhaq Farooqi. Now, the surface was on the slower side but it was still much better than what India had to deal with in New York.
Rohit (8 off 13) was the first to go. The Indian skipper never looked comfortable in the middle and eventually fell to Farooqi in the third over trying to heave him out of the park. The right-handed batter was undone by a cutter and top-edged one to the wicketkeeper.
All of his three dismissals in the World Cup have come against left-arm pacers. In fact, this is the 24th time Rohit got out to a left-arm seamer, the most by any batter in T20Is. In T20s this year, the 37-year-old has an average of 16 against this bowling type in 19 innings.
What’s more, all of his three dismissals in this event have come on deliveries pitched on the stump-line. And it’s completely the opposite for Kohli. The 35-year-old is having his worst T20 World Cup and has gotten out on deliveries pitched way outside off.
After scoring 0, 4 and 1 in the first three innings, Kohli registered his highest score in this World Cup but failed to convert it into a substantial score. Unlike in the first three games, Kohli was slightly more sedate at the start and was willing to take some time to settle in.
He slammed Naveen-ul-Haq’s short delivery over the head of the bowler for a six and it looked like Kohli was starting to find his rhythm back. However, he didn’t last too long and chipped Rashid Khan’s full-length delivery to the fielder at long-off after scoring 24 off 24.
The two were back in the hut before the end of nine overs but India managed to get to an above-par total of 181/8, thanks to Suryakumar Yadav (28-ball 53), Rishabh Pant (11-ball 20) and Hardik Pandya (24-ball 32).
The Men in Blue have managed to survive so far without much contribution from Rohit and Kohli but the experienced duo will have to step up and make an impact as India go deeper into the tournament.
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