Virtuoso of Bombay Gharana

    Photo courtesy: BCCI

Unless someone has it wired in his DNA, and there are a few like Don Bradman, Pele, Ayrton Senna, Michael Jordan, Roger Federer and Serena Williams, greatness in lesser gifted athletes, often surfaces in times of crisis. 

In last eight innings over five tests, Rohit Sharma was averaging 21.75 - a bulb hadn’t sprouted beautiful leaves in a while. The usual murmurs had begun. Even an intriguing suggestion of replacing him with a rank newcomer was making rounds. 

The pride of a gifted player was hurting and he needed to cease the moment. In the first test in Chennai, the team got a drubbing with a demoralising 227-run margin. The onus of bouncing back was on senior players like Rohit. 

What followed was a modern day classic - an imposing innings of 161 on a pitch that had promise of sinister even on day one. 

The enormity of Rohit’s innings in light of team’s fortune emerges from an innocuous assumption that had he scored a duck or 20, the team’s score would have plummeted to either 168 or 188. And that wouldn’t have created enough demons in the minds of English batsmen even though the pitch was constantly deteriorating. 

A century often has potency of transformation. If Ajinkya Rahane’s courageous 112 at the MCG had brought back the team from dead after that humiliating 36 all out at Adelaide, Rohit’s century had inexorably lifted the spirit of the team that was comprehensively beaten on the same ground just a few days ago. 

Rohit’s centuries, though just seven so far, often have the allure of classical music. It has that rare fusion of effortlessness, rhythm, elegance and dare. And this one was no different. 

The intent was announced early with a cover drive off Stuart Broad to the fence. The shot had the leisure and unhurriedness of a Sunday morning and yet it had timing of a consummate soloist. 

The repertoire of shots and that fraction of extra time that Rohit is gifted with lends an element of mystery to his batsmanship, especially in the eyes of spectators. It also makes his run scoring ability quite deceptive. 

A couple of lofted on-drive, pull shots and slog sweeps later, Rohit had raced to a 47-ball half-century. 

Even though Virat Kohli had perished for a duck to Moeen Ali, who had pulled off a classical off-spinner’s dismissal by beating Virat in air and breaching his defence to knock over the stumps, the sight or import of his captain’s departure hadn’t deterred Rohit. 

He blunted the threat of Moeen and Jack Leach by stepping out and hitting them for boundaries. A lofted six off Moeen to long off and a pull shot that sailed over mid-wicket fence off  Ben Stokes were wildly celebrated by the spectators, who had returned to stadium after a fairly long sabbatical owing to the COVID pandemic. He would also frequently employ sweep shot to unsettle the spinning duo’s length. 

Another Rohit’s skill that often slips under the radar of the opposition is his ability to milk the gaps in the field. He swept Moeen into the vacant fine leg to pick up an easy couple to reach his seventh test century in just 130 balls.

A partnership was needed to put the opposition to the sword and Rohit had found an accomplished ally in Rahane, his compatriot from Mumbai maidan days, who crafted a valuable innings of 67. Their fourth-wicket partnership of 162 runs had brought India back into the four-match test series. 

Into the post-tea session, runs were generously flowing from their bats. Rohit had reached 150 with a languorous flick off his hips for a single off Joe Root. Both looked all set to carry their bat to the next day. Perhaps, it was asking for too much. 

Finally, at the score of 248, Leach plotted Rohit’s fall when he had him caught as the sweep shot found Moeen at deep square-leg - the two spinners had conspired well to extinguish an incandescent knock. 

But not before the virtuoso of Bombay Gharana had lit up the revered theatre of Chepauk.