‘He can hit boundaries with such grace’- Kamran Akmal praises Rohit Sharma for his power-hitting and temperament

Kamran Akmal, the veteran Pakistan batsman, has heaped praises on Rohit Sharma, the vice-captain of the Indian ODI and T20I team. Rohit has been a linchpin of Team India’s limited overs teams with 33 centuries and 64 half-centuries. Last year, he also stamped his authority in Test cricket after being promoted to open the batting in the home series against Faf du Plessis’ South Africa.

It’s been over five months since Rohit hasn’t played any cricket after his injury during the T20I series versus New Zealand. He was set to lead Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), which had to be postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The 38-year-old Akmal found Rohit’s batting in the World Cup “unbelievable” and is amazed by his conversion rate in batting.

The biggest plus point is his power hitting, says Kamran Akmal

Akmal, who last played for Pakistan in April 2017, said that the Nagpur-born Rohit’s biggest plus point is his power-hitting. Along with Rohit, Akmal also asked youngsters to look up to the likes of Virat Kohli and Babar Azam. Kamran made the remarks while talking to Pakistan broadcast journalist Sawera Pasha on her Youtube chat show Cric Cast.

“Amazing, unbelievable batsman. The kind of joy you get while watching him bat is immense. His timing, temperament, and commitment towards batting is just unbelievable. Scoring 200s, 150s is very tough. He has two double hundreds I guess (Rohit has three). And look at the recent World Cup, he scored five centuries,” Kamran was quoted as saying.

“He can hit boundaries with such grace, can rotate the strike with singles too. The biggest plus point is his power hitting, he can hit big shots and sixes. Youngsters, who want to learn the art of batting, should watch him, Babar Azam, Virat Kohli,” Kamran added.

Akmal, himself, used to be a crucial part of Pakistan’s plans until he lost his place from the team. At the highest level, the Punjab-born has around 6,800 runs with 11 centuries and 27 half-centuries. In 2008, Akmal was also with the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He last played for the Peshawar Zalmi in the fifth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL).