Rohit Sharma targets MS Dhoni’s massive captaincy record as India aim 3-0 whitewash against Afghanistan in Bengaluru 

Rohit Sharma, as a batter, so far had a forgettable outing in the ongoing three-match T20I series against Afghanistan. But his captaincy was on point, helping him equal legendary MS Dhoni’s massive record. Following India’s comprehensive 6-wicket win over their Asian rivals at the Holkar Stadium in Indore, Rohit Sharma became the joint-most successful captain of his national team.

Till Sunday, Dhoni topped the list of most wins as a captain in T20Is for India (41 wins from 72 matches). However, now Rohit has drawn level with the former India wicket-keeper batter as he has won as many matches in just 53 T20Is. If India manage to whitewash the series 3-0, Rohit will no doubt become India’s most successful skipper as the veteran opener’s win percentage (77.35) is far ahead of Dhoni’s 59.28.

Virat Kohli is the third captain on the list with 30 wins from 50 matches with a win percentage of 64.58, followed by Hardik Pandya – 10 wins from 16 matches (65.62 %). Bengaluru’s M.Chinnaswamy Stadium will host the third and final match of the ongoing bilateral series. While Rohit will aim to add another feather to his cap, the Men in Blue will look to wrap up their final T20I assignment before the 2024 World Cup on a high.

Simultaneously, Rohit owns an embarrassing batting record 

Rohit was dismissed for a duck for the second consecutive time in the series against Afghanistan. In the first match in Mohali, the India skipper failed to open his account after a terrible mix-up with his opening partner Shubman Gill. In Indore, he tried to charge down the ground against Afghan pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi on the very first ball he faced, but failed completely and was clean-bowled as a result.

With these two dismissals, Rohit became the second batter with the most number of ducks in T20 history. The right-hander batter has accumulated 12 ducks from his 150 T20I outings. Only Ireland’s Paul Stirling is ahead of him with 13 ducks.

“It was extremely surprising the way Rohit got out. He was playing just his first ball. He doesn’t play such shots. The ball went and hit his stumps. He got run out in the last match and was bowled for zero in this match. He hasn’t scored a single run in this series thus far,” former India cricketer Aakash criticised Rohit’s shot selection in the second match.