'Ugliest': Rohit Sharma's patchy batting in T20 World Cup opener scrutinised by Dinesh Karthik

In a gripping match at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, India showcased dominance by defeating Ireland by 8 wickets with 46 balls to spare in the World T20 encounter. Ireland posted 96 runs in 16 overs, but India efficiently chased down the target, reaching 97/2 in 12.2 overs. Rohit Sharma's brilliant 52 off 37 balls and Rishabh Pant's unbeaten 36 off 26 balls led India to victory. Jasprit Bumrah's exceptional bowling performance earned him the Player of the Match title for his 2 wickets for 6 runs in 3 overs.

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Dinesh Karthik made a huge statement about Rohit Sharma's knock vs Ireland

Dinesh Karthik said that Rohit Sharma's 52-run knock on Wednesday, June 5, in India's 2024 T20 World Cup opener against Ireland was among his least graceful performances in his international career. Even yet, the Indian captain seemed uncomfortable throughout the run chase.

On the challenging pitch, Sharma emerged as India's top scorer, but an elbow injury ruined his performance and forced him to withdraw injured in the tenth over. Thinking back on Sharma's performance, Karthik said that because of the difficult surface conditions, Sharma would not have gained much confidence from his innings even with the runs.

Karthik said at a Cricbuzz discussion:

“It was probably one of his ugliest knocks going around in international cricket, mainly because of the pitch. Will he get a lot of confidence? You can't get too much confidence from this pitch because you are fighting against luck a lot of times. It's not something that you'll feel good about. You'll just feel satisfied that you got the job done for the team.”

“Rohit Sharma fought it out there. He played a few shots which will give him confidence, like the couple of sixes off Joshua Little, the pull shot, even that literally getting into a position, but not smooth enough how a normal Rohit Sharma does. So, overall it's an inning that will give him the belief that on tough pitches, there is a method that he has, which he will back and try and do, but also know at the back of his mind that it need not be successful the next day.”

Though Sharma might be somewhat satisfied with some strokes, Karthik said, he would also be aware that his strategy might not work as well on comparable wickets in the future. Batters find the surface at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York challenging because of its erratic bounce. Given the considerable lateral movement on this surface, fast bowlers have flourished.