Rohit Sharma may have missed out on a deserved century in the third ODI against the West Indies, but his 92-run knock once again underlined why experience could be one of India’s biggest assets heading into the 2027 ODI World Cup.With India rocked by the early dismissals of captain Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli, Rohit resisted the temptation to attack and instead absorbed the pressure before switching gears later in his innings. His measured approach drew high praise from former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik, who believes the knock showed exactly why Rohit will remain crucial for India in South Africa.
Rohit absorbs pressure before turning on the heat
India were in trouble early in the third ODI at the CA International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh, losing Gill and Kohli inside the opening three overs. With the pitch offering assistance to the West Indies pacers, Rohit had to put his natural attacking instincts aside.He joined Ruturaj Gaikwad to steady the innings and took his time against a disciplined West Indies attack. Rohit scored just 20 runs from his first 40 balls before accelerating dramatically, eventually finishing with 92 off 85 deliveries. Karthik highlighted that innings progression as the perfect example of how experience allows a batter to assess the situation rather than panic.“The beauty of having experience is that they have seen this situation a lot before. If you take Rohit Sharma, when he saw the two early wickets fall, if you see he was on 20 for the first 40 balls with a 50 strike rate. That was because he knew he could trust himself and back it up and get those runs quickly,” Karthik said on Cricbuzz.“And then you see how quickly he moved to 92 after scoring less than a run-a-ball. His strike rate went above 100, but he made that all up in the next 40 balls. In the first 40 balls, he took time, didn’t allow wickets to fall and then in the next 40 balls, he went and smashed,” he added.
Karthik sees Rohit’s experience as a World Cup weapon
Rohit’s ability to change gears according to the demands of the situation was particularly impressive given the quality of the West Indies bowling attack. Jayden Seales and Alzarri Joseph kept the pressure on early, forcing the veteran opener to play a more cautious role.Karthik believes that willingness to respect the conditions and wait for the right opportunity is precisely the kind of experience India could need when they travel to South Africa for the 2027 ODI World Cup.“He saw Jayden Seales was bowling a good spell; Alzarri (Joseph) was bowling nice and sharp. He took time, waited for them to bowl in his areas and if not, I am happy to defend. To have that courage and conviction in that moment is what experience is. A lot of people would have tried to do a little more than they should because they would fear. A young Rohit Sharma would have made that mistake but today he has a wealth of experience,” he added.
‘Same thing could happen in South Africa’
Karthik believes the lessons from the West Indies series could prove valuable when India face challenging conditions in South Africa. He pointed out that Rohit, Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill could all be required to adapt their games depending on the conditions rather than blindly sticking to an aggressive approach.“The same thing could have happened even in South Africa, and that’s when the experience of a Rohit or Shubman or Virat can come through, where they are able to lower their gears down and say, ‘Okay, I am not going to play big for the moment, and I know I can make up later,'” Karthik added.
