New Delhi [India], April 30 (ANI): India’s legendary opener Rohit Sharma, a modern-day colossus in white-ball cricket, turned 38 on Wednesday. The Indian ‘Hitman’ has played numerous memorable knocks throughout his illustrious career, but one arguably stands above the rest: his whirlwind in 2014 against Sri Lanka, the famed 264 folklore.
Before Rohit set a new bar in the ODI format in 2014, ‘Master Blaster’ Sachin Tendulkar had raised the standard in the 50-over format with an double century against South Africa at Gwalior in 2010. That day, the world stood still, watched in a state of trance, and fathomed the thought that someone had truly reached the never-achieved 200-run mark in ODIs.
It wasn’t Rohit’s first double hundred in the format, having previously achieved the feat in 2013. But his valiant effort in 2014 truly defined the art of batting, setting a new benchmark for everyone. The ethereal 264 runs that came out from Rohit’s bat is the highest individual score in the history of ODIs, a record that still holds.
Fast-forward four years, and the iconic Eden Gardens, the home of cricket in Kolkata, witnessed something special. A knock hardly anybody fathomed when they tuned in to see what Rohit was willing to serve up on the plate.
Rohit’s heroics would have been forgotten from history if he hadn’t survived that early scare. Thisara Perera was guilty of dropping Rohit on 4(16), a regulation catch that the Sri Lankan somehow managed to flounder, a moment that Sri Lanka regretted for the rest of the fixture.
With the sun shining over Eden, Rohit remained vigilant and cautious for his first 100 runs. But once he crossed the mark, Rohit broke the shackles and expressed himself freely, without the fear of what might happen next.
He danced around the crease, bore a beaming smile on his face, handsomely struck boundaries and arrived at the 150-run mark in the next 25 deliveries. Angelo Mathews and Seekuge Prasanna were caught in the line of fire from Rohit, which seemed never-ending.
In the next 26 deliveries, Rohit truly embraced his destructive nature, inflicting a catastrophe that remains fresh in the memories of those who witnessed the spectacle. He swung his bat ferociously, flaunting his boundary-hitting nerve with a wide array of shots from his loaded arsenal to cross the 200-run mark.
He raised both arms in the air as if enclasping the sky and roared in jubilation to celebrate the moment that belonged to him. When a thought occurred that Rohit might be done with his exploits, he showed he still had more left in his tank. In the final 22 deliveries, he truly defined how six-hitting comes naturally to him. Irrespective of the line and length of the deliveries, he dispatched the ball past the fence in the area that he wanted to.
Out of his last 22 deliveries, Rohit smothered Sri Lanka with nine boundaries and three sixes. His exploits eventually came to an end on 264(173), when he holed it to Mahela Jayawardene off Nuwan Kulasekara. India steamrolled to a daunting 404/5 that was way above Sri Lanka’s grasp. As India relished its 153-run success, Rohit took in the moment, having solidified his legacy. (ANI)
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