‘Don't be surprised if he repeats the 2019 World Cup performance’ – Sunil Gavaskar backs Rohit Sharma to perform well in England Tests

Sunil Gavaskar, the former Indian cricketer, reckons that Rohit Sharma has the potential to replicate his 2019 World Cup heroics in the upcoming Test series against England. In the WC two years ago, Rohit became the leading run-scorer, though he didn’t get the Player of the Tournament award.

He notched 648 runs at an average and strike rate of 81 and 98.33. The Nagpur-born also became the first cricketer to hit as many as five centuries in a single World Cup edition. His top score of 140 came against Pakistan, then led by Sarfaraz Ahmed, at the Old Trafford in Manchester.

Back in June, Rohit got a couple of 30s in the World Test Championship (WTC) final that India lost to New Zealand by eight wickets at the Rose Bowl in Southampton. But keeping in mind Rohit’s numbers on English soil, Gavaskar backed him to come good.

Sunil Gavaskar opines

“We saw Rohit Sharma score five incredible hundreds in the World Cup in England two years back,” Gavaskar was quoted as saying in Hindustan Times.

“The century he got against South Africa was on a tough pitch and cold conditions and he made the adjustments beautifully. Now two years later he is even more experienced so don’t be surprised if he repeats that performance in this series too,” Gavaskar added.

In the game against the Proteas in Southampton, the 34-year-old Rohit became the Player of the Match after his unbeaten 144-ball knock of 122. His inning was laced with 13 fours and two sixes, helping the Men in Blue to a six-wicket win. He helped India make a comeback after Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli perished inside the first 16 overs.

In the meantime, the Test series against England is set to get underway on August 4 at Trent Bridge in Nottingham. The venues for the remaining four Tests are Lord’s, Headingley, Kennington Oval, and Old Trafford.

Earlier this year when the Brits toured India for four Tests, Rohit was the second-highest run-scorer of the series with 345 runs at an average of 57.50. He also had a top score of 161 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.