Arguably one of the finest opening batsmen going around in world cricket, Rohit Sharma turns 35 on Saturday (April 30), and wishes are pouring in from all over the globe. Born in 1987, the dasher is an absolute nightmare for bowlers, and his record in all forms of cricket speaks volumes of his prowess. He has been blessed with impeccable time, and his temperament is also second to none. While Rohit can score runs quickly, his tendency to stay at the crease for long makes him this lethal. Nicknamed Hitman, Rohit has also been a cornerstone of Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL). In fact, MI’s all five IPL titles came under Sharma’s leadership. Rohit Sharma Opens Up on Mumbai Indians’ Dismal Run in IPL 2022, Thanks Fans for Their Support.

While the swashbuckler has played numerous sensational knocks in IPL, his only century in the gala T20 tournament came against Kolkata Knight Riders and in this article, we’ll revisit the day. It was the 2012 edition of IPL, and the venue was the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Back then, Rohit was a middle-order batsman and used to bat at number three for the Mumbai-based franchise.

MI skipper Harbhajan Singh won the toss and elected to bat first in that game. The decision didn’t seem to be great as legendary opener Sachin Tendulkar fell prey to Shakib Al Hasan after scoring just two runs. However, Rohit Sharma arrived in the middle, and since then, it was one-way traffic. Jasprit Bumrah, Rohit Sharma Named Among Wisden's Five Cricketers of the Year.

Sharma joined forces with Herschelle Gibbs, and the duo started the repair work against the likes of Brett Lee, Sunil Narine and Jacques Kallis. While the Proteas star was cautious in his approach, Rohit was aggressive, and he seemed like a man on a mission. After settling his feet in the track, the right-handed batsman unleashed the dasher within him and scored boundaries and sixes at will. The youngster eventually brought up his century off 52 deliveries.

In total, he scored 109 off 60 deliveries with the help of 12 boundaries and five massive sixes. As a result, MI posted 182/1 and went onto win the game by 27 runs.

There was no looking back for Rohit after that knock as he kept on improving and emerged as a world-beater. Right now, he’s participating in IPL 2021 and aims to take MI to their sixth title. The star opener will next take the field in Mumbai’s next game against Chennai Super Kings at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on May 1 (Saturday).

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 30, 2022 09:48 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).