India skipper Rohit Sharma put on an exhibition with the bat in Match 9 of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 against Afghanistan at Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi on Wednesday (October 11).
Chasing 273 to win, Rohit slammed 131 off 84 balls to script India’s eight-wicket victory with 15 overs to spare. His brutal knock was studded 16 fours and 5 sixes.
With his whirlwind display, Rohit surpassed West Indies swashbuckler Chris Gayle’s tally (553) to become the most six hitter in international cricket.
Before this game, Sharma had hit 551 sixes and he now has 556 sixes to his name across formats, three more than the Caribbean left-hander. The Indian captain achieved this feat in 473 matches, precisely 78 innings fewer than Gayle.
Following the match, Rohit Sharma spoke to bcci.tv and acknowledged drawing inspiration from Chris Gayle aka the 'Universe Boss' throughout his journey.
"Universe Boss is Universe Boss. I have taken a leaf out of his book. Over the years, we have seen him, such a six-hitting machine he is wherever he plays.
"We wear the same jersey (No. 45). I am sure he is happy about it because jersey No. 45 has done it (breaking his record)," Rohit said.
Rohit, the owner of three double hundreds in ODI cricket, further stated that a lot of work has gone into developing his six-hitting skills.
"When I started playing this game, I never thought I would be able to hit sixes, leave alone that many sixes. Obviously, a lot of work has been put into it over the years. So, I am quite happy with the work that I have done.
"I am the sort of person who is not satisfied (with what he has been doing), and I want to continue what I am doing. My focus is on that. Yeah, it is a small happy moment for me," he remarked.
Asked to bowl first, India restricted Afghanistan to 272/8 in 50 overs. Pacer Jasprit Bumrah starred with the ball with a four-wicket haul (4/39) while all-rounder Hardik Pandya returned with the figures of 2/43 in his seven overs.
Lauding his bowlers, Rohit said: "I thought we played a brilliant game. The bowlers did an exceptional job to restrict Afghanistan to below 280 because the wicket was really good to bat on."
The Indian captain urged his troops to focus on the job at hand rather than thinking about the knockout stages.
"It is a very different format that we play now, the World Cup -- 9 league games and then the semifinals and final. For us what was important was to look at every game that came our way and not to look too far ahead," he remarked.
