Team India captain Rohit Sharma became the first Indian ever to feature in eight Asia Cup contests when he walked out to bat in the game against Pakistan in Pallekele on September 2 (Saturday). The 'Hitman' has now featured in eight continental tournaments which is two more than Virat Kohli and Sachin Tendulkar and three more than MS Dhoni. All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja is second on that list as he has featured in seven Asia Cup tournaments.
It was in 2008 when Rohit Sharma made his debut in the Asia Cup and since then, the stylish right-handed batter has evolved as one of India's most trusted players in all formats of the game.
Hitman has won the Asia Cup on three occasions while he also lifted the trophy as the skipper of the Men in Blue in 2018, a tournament which was played in the ODI format.
Rohit's start to his eighth Asia Cup campaign didn't go as planned as the Indian skipper failed to give the team a solid start.
'Hitman' was the first casualty for India. After being handed a lifeline on the second delivery of the match by Fakhar Zaman, the Indian skipper tried hard to negate the swinging deliveries from Pakistan seamers. He played and missed on numerous occasions before Afridi delivered an absolute peach to rock Rohit's off-pole.
A good length delivery that jagged back into Rohit brought the 'Hitman's' downfall. The ball snuck in between Rohit's inside edge and his pad before dislodging the off-stump. Rohit departed after scoring 11 runs off 22 balls with the help of two fours.
The Mumbai Indians captain will have more opportunities to showcase his stupendous ability of stroke-making as India is scheduled to play a lot of ODIs in the next three months. Rohit's form will also dictate how far India goes in the ongoing Asia Cup competition. Also, the ODI World Cup is scheduled to start in just over a month's time and India is expected to lift the title at home.
For that to happen, Rohit's contribution with the bat has to be significant.
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