Team India’s decision to push Rohit Sharma in the opening slot in Tests alongside Mayank Agarwal in the recently concluded Test series against South Africa proved beneficial for the team as well as for the player. He amassed a whopping 529 runs across four innings at an average of 132.25 which was praised by former India batsman VVS Laxman recently.

“Not only did he come with a clear game plan, he also showed the discipline to stick to it, which to me was a huge tick in the box,” VVS Laxman wrote in his column for TOI. “Once he got his eye in and the pitch eased out a touch, he was back dotting the landscape with conventional free-flowing Rohit strokes. That he kicked on to score his maiden double-ton (in the third Test) was further proof of his desire to not be satisfied easily.”

“Batting with the maturity that experience brings with it, Rohit showcased impeccable judgement in the first session when an inspired Kagiso Rabada was making the most of assistance from the surface. With the ball jagging around, Rohit left balls outside off repeatedly, refusing to play unless he needed to,” he added.

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VVS Laxman also applauded India’s pace attack fas they performed pretty well and didn’t allow the visitors to play freely in the whole series.

“Contrary to expectations, pace more than spin got the job done for the hosts after they amassed close to 500,” he said. “It was terrific to watch Mohammed Shami and Umesh Yadav not just pick up wickets, but also the manner in which they did so,” he said.

“I was delighted that Shahbaz Nadeem made his debut, just reward for years of unsung toil in first class cricket. It was a bonus that the debut came at his home ground, and the fact that he looked entirely at home in Test cricket bears testimony to the depth and robustness of the Indian domestic structure,” VVS Laxman concluded.