Former Australian fast bowler Brett Lee recalled how impressed he was after seeing Rohit Sharma time the ball and knew that the Indian batsman was of a different class.
“He was flamboyant and aggressive but my first memory of Rohit Sharma was the sound of his bat,” Brett Lee was quoted as saying on Star Sports’ show Cricket Connected.
“That’s the first thing I could think of; the knock of the bat from people hitting the ball right off the center — it’s a different sound,” he added.
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Lee also felt Sharma was a fast bowler’s nightmare with the way he dominated the bowling at the top of the order.
“He is the kind of guy who is so mentally switched on, that once he gets through the tough period, he cashes in,” Lee said.
“When you got guys like Sharma at the top of the order, who can dominate from early on, they are the guys I don’t want to bowl to. He is definitely in that class,” he added.
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Former Indian fast bowler Irfan Pathan knew Rohit Sharma was destined for greater things when he started opening the batting for India.
“I remember seeing him bat during the net sessions of the Champions Trophy (2013) when he started opening the batting. In the nets, when everyone else was struggling he was not missing a single delivery. We were discussing behind the nets; how Rohit is going to finish his career on a high in Indian cricket,” Pathan said.
Rohit Sharma has since grown into one of the best batsmen in limited-overs cricket and has also started establishing himself in the opener’s slot in the longer format.
You can watch the entire episode of Cricket Connected on Disney+Hotstar here.