Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 21 : Ahead of the high-octane contest between arch-rivals India and Pakistan in the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy at Dubai on Sunday, former Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh backed skipper Rohit Sharma's match-winning abilities, saying that the Hitman getting runs even while struggling could be dangerous for opponents.
Unlike the 50-over and T20 World Cups, Pakistan has a 3-2 advantage over India in the Champions Trophy, having secured a 180-run triumph in the 2017 final during the peak of star India batter Virat Kohli where no target was too much for his men. They will be heading to Dubai with plenty of momentum.
Speaking on JioHotstar's 'Greatest Rivalry Returns', Yuvraj said about Rohit that it does not matter to him if Rohit is in form or out of form.
"In ODI cricket, especially in white-ball formats, he has been India's biggest match-winner as a batsman, alongside Virat Kohli. If Rohit is struggling but still gets runs, that is dangerous for the opposition. If he is in form, he will score a century in 60 balls. That is his quality--once he gets going, he is not just hitting fours; he is clearing the ropes with sixes. He is also one of the best players of the short ball. Even if someone bowls at 145-150 kmph, Rohit has the ability to hook it effortlessly. His strike rate is always between 120-140, and on his day, he can single-handedly win you the game."
In 19 ODIs against Pakistan, Rohit has scored 873 runs at an average of 51.35 and an average of 92.38, with two centuries and eight fifties. His best score is 140.
Despite a massive dip in form during the 2024-25 Test season spanning from Bangladesh Tests at home to the Border-Gavaskar Trophy tour to Australia, during which he made just 164 runs in eight matches at an average of just above 10 with a half-century in 15 innings, Rohit has retained his strong ODI game, scoring 163 runs in four ODI innings so far at an average of 40.75 and a strike rate of 120.74, including an explosive century against England and a 41-run knock of 36 balls in CT opener against Bangladesh.
India squad for Champions Trophy: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohd. Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Varun Chakaravarthy.
Pakistan squad for Champions Trophy: Mohammad Rizwan (c), Babar Azam, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi.