Rohit Sharma-Shikhar Dhawan Surpass 5000-Run Mark as Opening Pair

Indian opening duo of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan on Tuesday completed 5,000 ODI runs as an opening pair. The duo achieved this landmark during the first ODI of the three-match series against England at the Kennington Oval on Tuesday where they took 12 deliveries to reach the milestone. With this record, the pair became the fourth duo in the world to achieve the milestone. The first on the list is Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly with a total of 6,609 runs. They are followed by Australia’s Adam Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden with 5,372 runs, and the pair of Desmond Haynes and G Greenridge with 5,150 runs. Rohit and Dhawan have stitched 5108 runs so far as an opening pair.

Coming to the match, a blistering partnership between Rohit and Shikhar and a six-wicket haul by Jasprit Bumrah guided Team India to a 10-wicket win over England in the first ODI of the three-match series.

Rohit smashed 76 runs off 58 balls while Shikhar scored 31 runs off 54 balls to help the Men in Blue chase down the target of 111 runs in just 18.4 overs. Apart from Bumrah, Mohammed Shami took three wickets while Prasidh Krishna settled for one.

Chasing 111, Team India started off on a decent note with the opening pair of Rohit and Dhawan steadily taking the innings forward. The duo scored 21 runs in six overs, before bringing the momentum in the game and smashing 35 runs in the next four overs.

The Men in Blue crossed the 50-run mark in 10 overs with both the batters standing unbeaten at the crease. Continuing the proceedings at a steady rate, Rohit brought up his half-century in 49 balls and helped Team India reach the 100-run mark in 18 overs.

Promoted

With only 11 runs left to win, the duo smashed 13 runs in the next four balls and brought Team India to a 10-wicket victory in just mere 18.4 overs and gained a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series against England.

Both the teams will square for the second ODI on Thursday at Lord’s, London.