IND vs AUS 2023: He reminded me of Cheteshwar Pujara – Sanjay Bangar lauds Rohit Sharma

Former Indian batting coach Sanjay Bangar showered praise on Rohit Sharma after the home team won the first Test match against Australia by an innings and 132 runs at the VCA Stadium, Nagpur on Saturday. Rohit scored a match-winning knock of 120 runs in the first innings to help India post 400 runs on the board and get a sizeable lead of 223 runs.

Bangar feels Rohit’s knock reminded him of Cheteshwar Pujara as the former showed all the patience in his innings. The Indian opener looked at ease on a difficult pitch, where almost all the Australian batters found themselves at sea.

Rohit brought his A-game when it mattered the most and there is no doubt that he has taken giant strides in Test cricket in the last couple of seasons. The Indian skipper showed the right temperament and he had the right technique to come up with the goods against the visitors.

Sanjay Bangar said on Star Sports, “The best thing for me was that the intent was good in any case, but he even stepped out and defended quite a few balls. He reminded me of Cheteshwar Pujara because the way Cheteshwar Pujara defeated Australia in Australia, Rohit Sharma defeated the spinners in the same way in India.”

Bangar heaped praise on Rohit for making good use of the feet to get to the pitch of the ball against the Australian spinners.

“He came down the pitch quite a few times and defended. Usually, players or batters intend to play big shots after stepping out, but he continued to restrain himself and he showed that, by doing it exceptionally well.”

Meanwhile, Rohit raced to 56 runs on the opening day, striking at more than run-a-ball at one stage. However, Rohit took a sedate approach on the second day of the Test match as he showed his class.

“He batted differently on the two days. When he came on the first day, the approach was different. He knew he had to capitalize because once a team is down, you need to be aggressive simultaneously. When they bowled better, he took a slightly defensive approach. It doesn’t mean that he didn’t attack the loose balls.”
On the other hand, former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan added that Rohit was brilliant against the Australian seamers as well.

“When the fast bowlers were bowling the hard lengths, where you can neither go forward nor back, he batted with great respect and concentration there. When he got the balls slightly short or on the leg side, then he pulled it brilliantly as well.”

The second Test match will be played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi from Friday onwards.