Former India player turned veteran commentator Aakash Chopra has applauded Rohit Sharma for his ultra-aggressive batting approach as captain in the second Test between India and Bangladesh in Kanpur. He shared that the two sixes he hit off his first two deliveries in the first innings were an example as well. However, India defeat Bangladesh by seven wickets on Tuesday, October 1, to seal the two-match series 2-0 as well.

During a discussion on Colors Cineplex, Chopra said, “You will have to give him credit for his thinking. The two sixes he hit off two balls, that thinking was more important because then there was no difference in what he said and what he did. You say that you want to play like that but when you show it by doing it, the entire team is behind you. That was worth watching – 50 runs in three overs, 100 runs in 10 overs, and then the fastest 150 and 200, and you said you would declare without even playing 50 overs. You can give credit to the new pairing of Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir for that because these are collective decisions.”

However, Aakash Chopra also added that the second-innings declaration in the Chennai Test would have also been a collective decision. He said that Gambhir and even Virat Kohli would have provided their input as well.

“When you have five bowlers of this level, your job as a captain is very easy. Whomever you give the ball to, you know if not now, sometime later, if not from this end, then the other end. So if you go with that thinking, he is blessed that he has a bowling unit already prepared like this. You can praise him for that as he has prepared it or how many opportunities he gave to whom. But at this time, bowling changes, this way or that way, the opposition team has played in such a way that they have surprised all of us. The two-and-a-half days matches you were talking about, those pitches were very different,” Aakash Chopra concluded.