India’s captain, Rohit Sharma, etched his name in T20 International history by becoming the first batter to achieve five centuries in the format. After consecutive ducks in the first two matches against Afghanistan, Sharma made a stunning comeback with a century in the third T20I. His remarkable innings of 121 runs off 64 balls, featuring 10 fours and 6 sixes, played a pivotal role in rescuing India from a precarious position at 22/4.
Sharma’s last T20I century was in 2018 against West Indies, where he scored an unbeaten 111 at Lucknow. This century, however, surpassed his previous record, highlighting his dominance in the shortest format.
The skipper, along with Rinku Singh’s aggressive 69, led India to a commanding position against Afghanistan’s bowling attack in Bengaluru. The remarkable turnaround showcased Sharma’s resilience and ability to bounce back, ultimately steering India to a formidable total in the third T20I.
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Eventually, India registered a mammoth score of 212/4 in their quota of 20 overs owing to some brutal hitting from both Rohit Sharma and Rinku Singh in the slog overs. For context, they amassed as many as 103 runs in the last 5 overs including 36 runs in the final over. Also, Rinku also amassed his second T20I fifty and on both occasions, he came out to bat in the powerplay overs.
Here is the video of Rohit Sharma’s century moment:
π₯ That Record-Breaking Moment! π π@ImRo45 notches up his 5β£th T20I hundred π π
Follow the Match βΆοΈ https://t.co/oJkETwOHlL#TeamIndia | #INDvAFG | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/ITnWyHisYD
β BCCI (@BCCI) January 17, 2024
Earlier in that day, opting to bat first after winning the toss, Rohit Sharma explained, “We have bowled in the first two games, so we want to bat first. Nothing to do with the pitch. We want to try different things, different combinations.”
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In terms of team composition, the playing XI for India sees the exclusion of Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, and Jitesh Sharma, making way for Sanju Samson, Avesh Khan, and Kuldeep Yadav. Meanwhile, Afghanistan has excluded Naveen-ul-Haq, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and Fazalhaq Farooqi from the playing XI.
Here is how the netizens reacted to the partnership from Rohit Sharma and Rinku Singh:
Rohit Sharma π€ Rinku Singh
OuRβRRβ π πͺ#TeamIndia | #INDvAFG | @IDFCFIRSTBank | @ImRo45 | @rinkusingh235 pic.twitter.com/SfKSl07JoE
β BCCI (@BCCI) January 17, 2024
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This is now the highest partnership for India for ANY wicket.
190 – Rinku & Rohit v AFG, today
176 – Samson & Hooda v IRE, 2022
165 – Rohit & Rahul v SL, 2017#INDvAFG pic.twitter.com/hZ8DFyPM5lβ Kausthub Gudipati (@kaustats) January 17, 2024
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R for Rohit, R for Rinku, R for Resilience! π₯π pic.twitter.com/yse9rV9lYD
β Lucknow Super Giants (@LucknowIPL) January 17, 2024
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Even without the initial dash, Rohit Sharma has played one of his best T20 knocks. In the context of pitch and match situation, and that he was coming into this game with two blobs, Rohit and Rinku have put on display a brilliant counter attack πππ#INDvAFG
β Vikrant Gupta (@vikrantgupta73) January 17, 2024
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Rohit and Rinku smashed 103 runs in the last five overs to guide India to a huge total π€―π₯#RohitSharma #India #Cricket #T20Is #INDvsAFG #RinkuSingh pic.twitter.com/0UX5TKDnHj
β Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) January 17, 2024
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India smashed 36 runs from the 20th over.
The Rinku and Rohit show. pic.twitter.com/4lHs8k2zu9
β Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) January 17, 2024
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#INDvAFG #RohitSharma #Rinkusingh
Rohit Sharma π€ Rinku Singh unbreakable partnership πβ¨ pic.twitter.com/A8pfczIvncβ Valdimiputin ( Parody account) (@valdimiputin) January 17, 2024
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The Madness and The Destruction of Captain Rohit Sharma and Rinku Singh.
– The Brothers of Destructionβ¦!!!! π₯ pic.twitter.com/phdDS8qVjK
β CricketMAN2 (@ImTanujSingh) January 17, 2024
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From 22-4 to 212-4 in 20 overs.
Crazy crazy recovery from Rohit Sharma and Rinku Singh. Goated partnership. pic.twitter.com/UqodIlQ4sMβ R A T N I S H (@LoyalSachinFan) January 17, 2024
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