India's Rohit Sharma notched up his second half-century of the year as he gave India a commendable start in the second Test against England at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday. Rohit, who was persisted for the opening role throughout the Test series, proved his worth with the bat, hitting his 12th Test half-century laced with 8 fours and a six.
Rohit, among the senior players of the Indian Test contingent, returned to Test cricket only last month in Australia. He didn't play almost for a year due to injury and Covid-19 hiatus. However, his return to the red-ball format was ordinary as he managed to register scores of 26, 52, 44, 7, 6, and 12 for a total of 147 at an average of 24.50.
During his knock, Rohit also hit pull shots off consecutive deliveries against Ben Stokes. "A Rohit double pull shot on display. One went for a six and the other for a boundary. The @ImRo45 pull shot was in full flourish in two consecutive balls," tweeted the BCCI.
Earlier, India won the toss and elected to bat against England in Chennai. After suffering a 227-run defeat in the series opener, Virat and Co will be eager to level the four-Test rubber. After Shubman Gill's early departure, Rohit and Cheteshwar Pujara steadied India's innings on a spin-friendly track. The experienced duo stitched a half-century stand for the second wicket.
Ahead of the second Test, vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane had also backed Rohit saying that few low scores won't make him a bad player.
"Rohit is an important member of our team. A big score doesn't mean you have to make 100 or 150. In Australia, he batted well, made important contributions. See if someone has one off-day, plays 3-4 bad innings, it doesn't mean that he is a bad player. You have to back your player," Rahane told the media on Thursday.
