Leeds: A peerless Rohit Sharma’s (103, 94b, 14×4, 2×6) graceful willow continued its day job of breaking world records as India warmed up nicely for their World Cup semifinal, decimating Sri Lanka by seven wickets in their final group league match Saturday.
The Indian vice-captain scored an unprecedented fifth hundred in a single World Cup edition as India surpassed the Sri Lankan total of 264/7 in 43.3 overs and finished their league engagement with seven wins.
Ironically enough, whenever Angelo Mathews – who also hit a century – showed his grit against India, Rohit has inevitably overshadowed him in his inimitable style.
It happened in Mohali in 2017 when his double hundred overpowered Mathews’ century. Ditto at Headingley, one of the oldest cradles of English cricket where Mathews’’ fighting ton became a footnote.
KL Rahul (111, 118b, 11×4, 1×6), however, would have no complaints after scoring his maiden World Cup ton as he had the best seat in the house while playing the perfect support cast.
Rohit’s artistry was at a different level as he bled the Sri Lankan bowling, especially Lasith Malinga (1/82) with thousand cuts.
The beauty in Rohit’s strokes ensured that people had their eyes transfixed on the on-ground entertainment unlike ICC bigwigs who kept a hawk’s eye on disturbing anti-India banners over the Headingley air space.
Earlier, Mathews (113, 128b, 10×4, 2×6) had again turned out to be a thorn in India’s flesh with a gutsy hundred after a top-order collapse, guiding Sri Lanka to a respectable 264/7.
The former Sri Lanka captain played a near perfect knock with his back to the wall, to give his team a chance to fight which looked bleak after first hour.
Jasprit Bumrah (3/37) was fast, accurate and mostly unplayable but Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1/73) had a forgettable day.
The Lankan veteran came in at 53/3 and it soon became 55/4 when Lahiru Thirimanne (53, 68b, 4×4) joined him.
The duo added 124 runs for the fifth wicket to bail the team out of the woods. He then had a 74-run stand for the sixth wicket with Dhananjaya de Silva (29) that helped Sri Lanka get past the 250-run mark.
The 32-year-old Mathews’ knock was a treat to watch as it was a perfect example of how to build an innings after a top-order collapse.