IND vs ENG | Rohit Sharma hasn't hit a hundred but he is a class act, says Brad Hogg

08/30/2021

Former Australia chinaman bowler Brad Hogg has praised Indian opener Rohit Sharma for his batting in the ongoing series against England. Hogg pointed out the technical adjustments made by Rohit Sharma to succeed in English conditions where the Dukes ball moves more and for a longer duration.

Brad Hogg, the former Australian chinaman bowler has heaped rich praises on India opener Rohit Sharma, saying that the 34-year-old has made adjustments to his technique to propel in the difficult English conditions.

Hogg, who represented Australia on seven occasions in the longest format, said he was one of those cricketers having doubts on Rohit's abilities as a Test opener away from India, but his recent outings in the ongoing England tour has left him impressed.

Rohit Sharma came very close to his first-ever Test hundred outside India in the second Test match at Lord's. The hit-man scored 83 off 145 runs. In the first innings of the first Test at Trent Bridge, the swashbuckling right-hander got another start and looked well set before getting out on 107- ball 36. When chips were down in the third Test in Leeds, Rohit Sharma again showed tremendous grit and patience to score 59 off 156 balls.

"The way Rohit Sharma has adjusted playing late is unbelievable. I have been one of those commentators who has been criticizing his form in Test cricket away from India. Even though he hasn't scored a hundred in the series so far, he has shown that he is a class act and deserves more accolades at the Test level when he is away from India. I just hope he finishes off the series with a century because he deserves it the way he has adjusted," explained Hogg on his YouTube channel.

Rohit so far has been the second highest run-getter for India in the series with 230 runs at the average of 46. He is behind KL Rahul, who has scored 252 runs in 3 Tests.

Apart from praising Rohit, Hogg also expressed his concern on Rishabh Pant's form. Pant has so far scored 25, 37, 22, 2 and 1 respectively in the three Test matches so far. Overall, he is the fourth-highest run getter in Test cricket this year and averages 43 despite poor show in his his last 5 innings.

"I am a little worried about Rishabh Pant at the moment because when India were under pressure, there was a bit of confusion in the way he wanted to go about his innings. I think the leadership group should let him play his natural game because he hasn't got enough experience behind him in that defensive game yet in England," Brad Hogg concluded.

The series is currently levelled 1-1 and the fourth Test will be played at The Oval from September 2.