File image of Rohit Sharma
India's stand-in skipper Rohit Sharma stands on the verge of eclipsing teammate Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni on Sunday at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in the first T20I match of the three-match series against Bangladesh. And with both the stalwarts absent for entire contest at home against the depleted Bangladesh side, Rohit will have a comfortable opportunity to surpass the two and consolidate his position in the two lists.
In his first, when Rohit will take the field on Sunday at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, he will surpass Dhoni to become the highest-capped Indian player in T20I cricket. Both are presently tied at 98 and stand third on the list. On Sunday, Rohit will have the chance to join former Pakistani cricketer Shahid Afridi in the second spot with 99 appearances in the format. Pakistan's Shoaib Malik stands atop with 111 appearances for his country.
"It's been a long journey, since 2007 T20 World Cup when I had made my debut. It has had lots of ups and downs and I have learned so many things in these 12 years in the format. And it has only taught me so many lessons. Things started off smoothly for me at the start of my career, and with few ups and downs I have only become a stronger player. I have understood my game well. I will cherish this journey always,” said Rohit when asked about the elite feat.
Rohit also stands eight runs short of overhauling Kohli to reclaim the top spot in the run-getter's list in T20I cricket. With an unbeaten 72 against South Africa in the second T20I in September, Kohli had surpassed Rohit. However, with the skipper being rested for the Bangladesh series, Rohit stands an opportunity to take the top spot. Rohit presently has amassed 2443 runs in 90 innings, while Kohli has 2450 runs in 67 innings.
