Veteran India batter Cheteshwar Pujara applauded Rohit Sharma’s composure under huge scrutiny after his historic century against England at Lord’s, saying that Rohit showed amazing mental strength by shutting out external criticism and adapting his approach. Pujara said that Rohit Sharma played a patient, calculated innings rather than his usual aggressive style, keeping the conditions in mind before accelerating after reaching his fifty.

“You need to be mentally strong. There was a lot of outside noise, but credit goes to Rohit for the way he handled himself. There was no pressure visible in his facial expressions or body language. Whenever there’s outside noise, it does reach you. You try to block it out, but you know there’s a lot of chatter around you. Rohit will be relieved and pleased with the work he has put into his game because it wasn’t easy,” Pujara said on JioStar.

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“It wasn’t a typical Rohit Sharma innings; he took his time and understood that this is also how you can bat in ODI cricket. So, even for someone like Rohit Sharma, who is so experienced, there was a lesson to learn. You respect the conditions, and once he was set and reached his fifty, he started accelerating. It shows how you respond when you’re put under pressure,” he again said.

However, Rohit Sharma scripted history at Lord’s, becoming the first Indian to score an ODI century at the famous venue. He smashed a brilliant 138 off 110 balls in the third ODI against England on Sunday, adding another milestone to his illustrious career as well.