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Gautam Gambhir Credits MS Dhoni For Rohit Sharma Success Amidst Asia Cup 2023

image-lmgeiikcRohit scored a fifty against Sri Lanka in Asia Cup [AP Photo]

Rohit Sharma netted 53 runs against Sri Lanka in Colombo to register his third successive half-century this ongoing Asia Cup 2023. The Indian captain toppled a number of rare batting records through the course of his knock, on an afternoon where the rest of his teammates crumbled in front of Sri Lanka’s spin twins Dunith Wellalage and Charith Asalanka.

For starters, Sharma crossed the 10,000-run mark and became the second fastest in ODI history after teammate Virat Kohli to do so. Moreover, the opening batsman displaced Shahid Afridi as the highest six-hitter across all ODI Asia Cup editions. The cricketer also became the fastest in the world to mint over 8,000 runs as an ODI opener, achieving the feat in his 160th innings as compared to Hashim Amla in 173 innings.

In lieu of his latest laurels, former cricketer Gautam Gambhir praised Sharma and credited MS Dhoni behind his unmitigated success for Team India.

Gambhir credits MS Dhoni for Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma shot himself to prominence for India with his batting heroics back during the 2007 T20 World Cup under MS Dhoni’s leadership. Despite his initial success, the then youngster failed to truly cement his place in the side for the subsequent few seasons.

However, Sharma injected new life into his international career when he was asked to open the innings by Dhoni ahead of the 2013 Champions Trophy. The right-hander flourished in his newfound role, overseeing India’s batting line-up alongside Virat Kohli for the next 10 years.

Gautam Gambhir, a former opener himself, recently praised Dhoni for backing Sharma during his initial phase. While speaking on Star Sports as part of his expert analysis during the ongoing Asia Cup 2023, Gambhir said:

“Rohit Sharma is Rohit Sharma today because of MS Dhoni. MS Dhoni backed him continuously in his initial struggling phase.”

In the meantime, Team India managed just 213 upfront despite Rohit Sharma’s batting blitz at the top. Sri Lankan spinners accounted for all 10 Indian wickets in the innings, with Dunith Wellalage’s 5-40 being the hosts’ biggest benefactor with the ball on the day.