Twitter goes wild as Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli open for India before taking England to cleaners

Team India sprung a huge surprise at the start of the ongoing fifth T20I against England by sending out skipper Virat Kohli to partner Rohit Sharma at the top of the batting order. The decision to send out Kohli as an opener came after India failed to get good starts with the bat in the previous four T20Is. The Men in Blue tried out three combinations in four games but did not taste much success.

In the first game, Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul opened the innings and could only add only 2 runs for the first wicket. Rahul managed just 1 while Dhawan scored 4 as India lost the game by 8 wickets. In the second game, Ishan Kishan replaced Dhawan but India still lost an early wicket. Rahul departed for a duck before Kishan and Kohli scored fifties to guide India to win.

In the third game, Rohit returned the playing eleven and opened the innings with Rahul. Rahul’s poor form continued with the bat as he departed for a duck and India lost their first wicket for just seven runs. In the fourth game, the hosts persisted with the same combination but it failed once again. India lost their first wicket for just 21 runs as Rohit and Rahul departed for 12 and 14 runs respectively.

Rohit Sharma-Virat Kohli partnership pays off

After four consecutive failures, India’s captain and vice-captain decided to open the innings and the decision paid off. Rohit and Kohli gave the home side a strong start with the bat after Eoin Morgan won the toss and invited India to bat first. Both the batsmen hit Jofra Archer for a four each in the second over and there was no looking back after that as they shared a 94-run stand off just 54 balls.

By the time the powerplay came to an end, India had raced away to 60 for no loss. Rohit was the aggressor during the stand while Kohli played the role of the second fiddle. Rohit brought up his fifty in style by dispatching Sam Curran for a six. The right-handed batsman reached his fifty off just 30 balls. Ben Stokes ended the stand when he castled Rohit in the 9th over after being hit for a four and a six. Rohit departed after scoring 64 off 34 balls.

Here is how Twitter reacted to Rohit and Kohli’s partnership: