It ain’t over till it’s over. Rohit Sharma’s record-breaking century, followed by Gulbadin Naib’s late flourish, ensured India and Afghanistan took each other to extremes in search of a winner on Wednesday. Not one, but two Super Overs decided the outcome of the high-scoring encounter, making the recently concluded 3rd T20I between India and Afghanistan at Bengaluru more than just an average dead rubber for the partisan crowd.
Returning to his second home for the third and final contest, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) icon Virat Kohli recorded his first-ever golden duck in T20Is. While opener Yashasvi Jaiswal departed for 4, in-form Shivam Dube (1) and returning Sanju Samson (0) also capped off embarrassing outings to push Team India on the verge of a great collapse at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium. With India having its back against the wall, skipper Rohit pummelled the Afghanistan bowlers into submission to lead the fightback for the Men In Blue.
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Rohit smashes record 5th century
Teaming up with youngster Rinku Singh (69*), an on-song Rohit propelled India to a challenging total in RCB’s den. The veteran Indian opener smashed his record fifth century to script history, surpassing Surykaumar Yadav and Glenn Maxwell, who have four each. Rohit and Rinku stitched an unbroken 190-run stand, which is the highest for the fifth wicket by any pair in T20Is. India smashed 58 runs in the last two overs to post the 212/4 in 20 overs, a remarkable recovery given they were 22/4 at one stage.
Afghanistan’s Karim Janat leaked 36 runs in the final over, as Afghanistan conceded 103 runs in the last 36 balls of the Indian innings. Skipper Rohit remained unbeaten on 121 off 69 balls – the fourth-highest individual score by an Indian batter in T20Is.
How Afghanistan responded
Punching above its weight in the dead rubber, Afghanistan put up a spirited performance with Rahmanullah Gurbaz, captain Ibrahim Zadran and Gulbadin Naib all smashing blazing half-centuries. A crucial cameo by Mohammad Nabi lifted the giant killers to 167/4 in 17 overs. Pacer Mukesh Kumar went for 10 in the 18th before Avesh Khan was hammered for 17 runs in the 19th over. India needed 18 runs to defend; skipper Rohit roped in pacer Mukesh to bowl the 20th over. On the final ball of the 20th, Gulbadin scored two runs to make it an 18-run over and push the tie into a Super Over.
What’s better than one Super Over?
Mukesh kickstarted the Super Over by triggering a Kohli-inspired run-out on the first ball. Gurbaz got lucky on the third ball to get a four, but Nabi smoked a six and ran 3 controversial byes to finish Afghanistan’s innings on 16. Leading India’s response, Rohit fired two consecutive sixes before toe-ending the penultimate ball of the over. Rohit then orchestrated a very rare tactic – he opted to retire out to inject some fresh legs in the form of Rinku at the non-striker’s end. What followed next only forced Rohit to return shortly after.
Another one!
Jaiswal ran a single on the final ball as India ended the first Super Over level-pegging with Afghanistan on 16 runs. India’s take-two in the Super Over saw Rohit and Co. scoring only 11 runs. Rohit opened the scoring with a six and followed it up with a four. After sneaking a single, India lost Rinku and Rohit to close Round 2 eventually on 11.
Rohit’s masterstroke
Marshalling his troops one final time at the Chinnaswamy, Rohit produced a masterstroke by unleashing Ravi Bishnoi in the second Super Over. Bishnoi repaid Rohit’s faith by getting the better of Nabi on the first ball, out caught at long-off. The former World No.1 Bishnoi then got the better of Gurbaz on the third ball to seal India’s thrilling double Super Over win over Afghanistan. The stadium erupted in euphoria. And why not? The supposedly-dead rubber became the first international contest to produce two Super Overs after India and Afghanistan blasted a combined 424 runs on Rohit’s starry night.
Hasibur Rahaman is a passionate sports journalist. He covers everything from cricket to field hockey, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis of sporting events, both within India and on the international stage.
