Kolkata: Rohit Sharma, who struck a century on debut in India's innings and 51-run win against the West Indies in the first cricket Test of Sachin Tendulkar's farewell series, said that the long wait for the Test cap was worth it.
Rohit, who is the latest entrant in the all-Indian ODI double century club, had to wait for 108 ODIs and six years for the Test debut. He came close in 2010 but a freak injury moments before the toss forced him to miss the Nagpur Test against South Africa in 2010.
"All I can say, it (the wait to make debut) was worth it, it can't get better than this, such a memorable match, really happy with what we have achieved," said Rohit, who is the only cricketer to make a Test debut after playing 100 ODIs.
It was a fantastic 280-run stand for the seventh-wicket between Rohit (177) and Ravichandran Ashwin (124) that turned the match on its heels for India from a precarious 156 for six in the first innings.
"We knew we had to extend the partnership as much as we can to get a lead. It wasn't easy to bat, runs weren't coming easy, we just wanted to stick out there and capitalise on loose balls. I really love playing at Eden Gardens, the crowd was amazing... it's been a really memorable ground for me," said Rohit, who was adjudged Man of the Match.
Ashwin said watching Rohit bat was a pleasure for him.
"When I got in the way, the wicket was behaving and (Shane) Shillingford was bowling. I thought I'd spend time at the crease and trust my defence... he was giving it an extra rip, that was a bit of a challenge... we enjoyed batting with each other, it was a pleasure watching Rohit bat," he said.
Asked about his bowling in the second innings when he picked up 3/46, Ashwin said: "It was one of the best bowling spells I had, I was very happy, just focusing on lines."
