Rohit Sharma 2.0 has been great for India, there is no need to revert to 1.0

Change is often difficult to understand, let alone accept – especially if it involves going against the norm.

A few years ago, when Rohit had decided to abandon caution at the top of the order in the Indian ODI XI, it had felt like an aberration would not last long. There were failures, of course – inevitable if one take risks – but he was still getting the runs, and more importantly, India were winning.

Rohit had smashed a 90-ball 119 two games before the Champions Trophy. However, in the ongoing tournament, his four innings have fetched him 104 runs at 26. Neither the small sample size nor the strike rate of 107 seemed relevant anymore: questions began to be raised – though, as head coach Gautam Gambhir assured as a press conference, a captain’s high-risk batting “just gives a very good signal to the dressing room that we want to be absolutely fearless and courageous.”

Sunil Gavaskar is among the critics of Rohit’s approach: “It’s one thing to go out and play aggressively, but there has to be a bit of discretion somewhere to give himself the chance to bat for 25-30 overs. If he does that, he takes the game away from the opposition. That kind of impact is match-winning. And I think, as a batter, are you happy with scoring 25-30 runs? You shouldn't be! So that is what I would say to him: your impact on the team will be even greater if you bat for 25 overs instead of just seven, eight, or nine overs.”

Two things are worth looking at here. One, to what extent has Rohit changed his approach? And two, have India benefitted from that?

What has changed for Rohit?

Rohit changed things somewhere around the start of 2022. Since three years (and a bit) have elapsed since then, it is fair to compare this phase with the three years before that – from January 1, 2019 to January 31, 2021.

The gross records make this quite obvious. Rohit averaged 54.71 in the first phase while striking at 90. In the second, the numbers have changed to 47.17 and 118. Earlier, he was the first wicket to fall 17 times in 33 innings – about once every two innings. It has since risen to 26 times out of 42 (nearly 62 per cent).

Read more: The Connolly punt and the Varun ploy: Seven tactical calls that decided the India v Australia semi-final

He used to last 61 balls per dismissal in the first phase: that has dropped to 40. Is 40 too low? There are 300 balls in an ODI innings. If a team has eight capable batters – India do have that at this point – they should be fine if a batter faces 38 balls, give or take. For seven batters – what India had for some time until 2023 – that count is about 43.

Since India have several batters who bat longer (and slower), they are best off if someone tees off when the field is up: why shouldn't Rohit be that person?

One can see why India decided to move on from Dhawan. Some statistics – Pandya and Jadeja’s dwindling strike rates, for example – may come as matters of concern to Indian fans. However, Axar Patel (strike rate 92) has worked his way up the order over this period.

Rahul’s changing numbers – still very good, by the way – have had to do with a change of batting position to accommodate Shubman Gill (62.67 and 101). Rahul also has the extra responsibility of being a regular wicketkeeper, allowing them to play the extra batter.

One significant change in Rohit’s approach has been his willingness to go for boundaries more often than his teammates. In fact, the rate has nearly doubled.

Kohli, Iyer, and – despite moving down the order – Rahul are more or less the same batters as they used to be. Pandya is not the batting force he used to be, but that is understandable for an injury-prone fast bowler. Jadeja, too, finds boundaries less often. One can see why, with Axar’s arrival, they have moved down the order.

Rohit’s change in approach has been drastic. He goes for boundaries nearly twice as often, which makes him a belligerent top-order big-hit behemoth. His 97 sixes are well clear of the tally of Gill (57) and Iyer (53), the next names on the list.

Let us, however, return to the other question: what impact has it had on India?

Do India want Rohit 1.0 or Rohit 2.0?

There is little doubt over the fact that India have had quicker starts: but have they been better starts?

The faster opening partnership run rates and bigger powerplay scores are, of course, on predicted lines. If one opener is scoring significantly quicker, the two numbers are bound to go up.

One may put part of the increase in the average opening partnership score to the phenomenal start to Gill’s ODI career, but surely Rohit’s early departure could have hurt India in any way?

Rohit’s change of approach seems to have bought India four runs per 50-over innings. That does not seem to be much. However, it must be remembered that, until recently, even during their excellent run in the 2023 World Cup, India often tried to bolster their bowling strength. In an attempt to do that, they played with a capable batter fewer than most ODI sides in the world. That often hampers death-over batting.

To sum up, India went in with the extra bowler, which weakened their batting. Despite that, Rohit took on the bowlers earlier than he used to. The rapid starts ensured India could delay their final onslaught. In the end, they got roughly the same number of runs they used to in the past – but with stronger bowling attacks.

The results showed. India have lost only one more ODI in the latter phase but won 22 more.