'Rohit Sharma's Defense Has Gotten Much Better': Sanjay Manjrekar

image-lmehvi6sRohit Sharma scored 49-ball 56 against Pakistan [AP Photo]

A lot of India's success in the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 will depend upon the batting form of Team India skipper Rohit Sharma. Sharma has been undergoing a rough patch in white-ball cricket recently and only looked in form against Nepal and Pakistan in the ongoing Asia Cup 2023. 

On Sunday, the Indian skipper displayed determination and aggression during his 49-ball stay against arch-rivals Pakistan in a Super 4s clash. The 36-year-old played out an intense probing spell, and then latched on anything loose, hitting six fours and four sixes during his 56-run knock.

Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar, who also played for Mumbai, lauded Sharma for working on his defensive batsmanship since the 2019 Cricket World Cup. Unlike several Indian batters, Sharma is not susceptible to the short-ball or anything outside off but faces troubles against incoming deliveries. 

Speaking to Star Sports, Manjrekar also explained Sharma's growth as a player during the past four years.


Here's what Manjrekar said

"He got 5 hundred in the last World Cup, right? My assessment of Rohit Sharma is that his defense has actually gotten much better. He is a much better Test player now than he was in 2019. So I have no issues. It's about converting those starts into big hundreds because that involves running a lot of ones and twos later on in the innings. But, on the pure quality of defense, Rohit is better today. That natural ability to hit the big shots is still there."

For the uninitiated, Sharma scored as many as five hundred in the 2019 WC edition, finishing with 648 runs in nine matches.