Legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has showered praise on Rohit Sharma, calling him one of the finest players of the pull shot, alongside the great Viv Richards.
Following Rohit Sharma’s retirement from Test cricket, Gavaskar reflected on his illustrious career, highlighting his ability to dominate fast bowlers with his signature stroke. In his column for Mid-Day, Gavaskar wrote, “I promise you that in the cricket that I have been blessed to watch, only Viv Richards played the pull shot as well as Sharma did.”
Gavaskar explained that while Richards played the pull shot by meeting the ball on the bounce, Rohit had the ability to get under the bounce and hammer it from midwicket to deep fine-leg for sixes. He described the shot as “destructive and demoralizing for a fast bowler”, emphasizing how Rohit’s ability to dispatch express deliveries into the stands made him a nightmare for opposition pacers.
The former India captain also recalled Rohit’s performance during the Gabba Test in 2021, where he faced Australia’s Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Josh Hazlewood with remarkable ease. “He had so much time to play the quicks that I remember saying during the Gabba Test that after the ball was delivered, he could take off his helmet, comb his hair, wear the helmet back, and still have time to swat the ball away into the crowd,” Gavaskar wrote.
Despite Rohit’s recent struggles in Test cricket, Gavaskar believes his graceful stroke play and ability to handle fast bowling will remain a defining aspect of his legacy.
