Sunil Gavaskar, a former India great, pleaded with captain Rohit Sharma to bat deeper and for longer stretches of time while somewhat reducing his aggressive batting intensity. Especially during the ODI powerplay stages, Sharma is renowned for his daring batting style and willingness to take chances against even the top bowlers.
For those who are unaware, Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir recently spoke about the leader’s intentions and publicly endorsed the “hitman.” After the Men in Blue advanced to the Champions Trophy 2025 final, he chastised those who had criticised the Mumbai-based batter. Gambhir made it quite evident in a recent press conference that the squad does not take player statistics into account when evaluating their performance. Instead, as a coach, he values a player’s “impact.” As a result, he praised the skipper for having the guts to attempt to give India flying starts at the top of the batting order.
Gavaskar, however, thought that Rohit Sharma ought to reevaluate his batting strategy since, if he bats for at least 20–25 overs in the 50-over format, he has the capacity to destroy the opposition and win the game for the team. In the current Champions Trophy, the 41-year-old has amassed 104 runs thus far, with a strike rate of 100. However, up till today, the Indian captain has not performed well. Unquestionably, though, his strategy has allowed the middle order to play more freely and express themselves.
For those who are unaware, Sharma used an aggressive batting style during the 2023 ODI World Cup, which was held in India. The captain kept up his strategy in the T20 World Cup last year, despite the fact that the Men in Blue were unable to enjoy the title glory. It ultimately paid off for Team India, as they won their second World Cup in the Twenty20 International format.
He has been using this strategy for the past two years or so. He has been following that strategy ever since it began during the World Cup in India. He has achieved some success, but maybe not as much as his skill should have allowed. India Today cited Gavaskar as saying, “He is a very talented player with a range of shots that not many others in the game possess.”
Therefore, if he bats for even 25 overs, India will be between 180 and 200 from an aesthetic and crowd-pleasing standpoint—I’m not talking from the perspective of the team. The former Indian batting legend went on, “Just consider what they could accomplish if they had only lost a few wickets by then. They could reach 350 or more.”
“Are you content with 25–30 runs?” Sunil Gavaskar queries The batting intent of Rohit Sharma
Sunil Gavaskar went on to say that Rohit Sharma and company may win the game by making a small adjustment to their batting strategy. Longer hitting sessions will therefore benefit the squad even more. Additionally, he stated that Rohit Sharma shouldn’t be satisfied with merely reaching 25–30 runs.
“He should think about it as well. Going out and playing aggressively is one thing, but somewhere there needs to be some prudence to allow him to bat for 25–30 overs. He deprives the opposition of the game if he accomplishes it. Impacts like that are match-winning. Are you content as a batter to score 25–30 runs, I believe? You must not be! Therefore, I would advise him to bat for 25 overs rather than just seven, eight, or nine overs because that would have an even bigger impact on the team,” Gavaskar said.
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