India vs Australia: Rohit Sharma smokes his ninth Test ton
Indian skipper Rohit Sharma recorded his ninth Test century in the ongoing series opener versus Australia. On Friday, Rohit converted his fifty to a maiden Test ton as skipper. He also became the first Indian captain with centuries in all three formats. The veteran opener ended up scoring a 212-ball 120 (15 fours, two sixes). Here we look at his stats.
A captain's knock from Rohit
Australia won the toss and elected to bat at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur. The Aussie batters endured a hard time as they were folded for 177. In reply, however, India got off to a stellar start with openers Rohit and KL Rahul (20) adding 76 runs. While wickets kept tumbling after Rahul's departure, Rohit stood strong at one end.
Rohit's brilliant return to Test cricket
It is worth noting that Rohit is playing his first Test in nearly 11 months. In March 2022, India routed Sri Lanka 2-0 at home under his leadership. Rohit then tested COVID-19 positive ahead of India's rescheduled Edgbaston Test against England.
His stellar numbers in Tests
Rohit has been India's mainstay opener across formats. He excelled in Tests at the top after Virat Kohli promoted him in 2019. In a career spanning over a decade, Rohit has played just 46 Tests. He has racked up over 3,257 runs at a 47-plus average (47.2). The tally includes nine centuries and 14 half-centuries. He owns six Test tons as an opener.
Second-best average in home Tests
Rohit averages a staggering 75.2 in Tests at home. His home average is the second-best among batters to have played over 15 Tests. Rohit is only behind Sir Donald Bradman, who finished with an average of 98.22 in home Tests. Interestingly, Rohit has scored eight of his nine Test centuries in home conditions. He even has a double-century in this regard.
250 sixes at home
During his knock, Rohit also became only the second batter after New Zealand's Martin Guptill to complete 250 international sixes at home. While the Kiwi batter owns 256 maximums in this regard, Rohit has 251 sixes. Meanwhile, Rohit has smashed 521 sixes in international cricket. Only WI's Chris Gayle is ahead of Rohit on the list with 553 maximums.
Captains with centuries in all formats
Rohit became the fourth batter to slam tons across all formats as a skipper. He joins Pakistan's Babar Azam, Sri Lanka's Tilakaratne Dilshan, and South Africa's Faf du Plessis in the elite list. Notably, Rohit owns three ODI tons and two T20I centuries as captain.
500-plus runs versus Australia
Rohit has now surpassed the 500-run mark versus Australia in the longest format. He now owns 528 runs in eight games against them at 37.71. The tally includes three fifties besides a ton. Rohit also equaled Sachin Tendulkar's tally of nine international tons versus Australia as an opener. Only England's Jack Hobbs (11) and WI's Desmond Haynes (11) own more tons in this regard.
