Rohit Sharma was mercilessly trolled on social media after reports emerged that he was issued traffic challans by the Police ahead of India's 2023 Cricket World Cup fixture against Bangladesh in Pune on Thursday.
Media reports suggested that the Team India skipper drove his Lamborghini Urus at a speed of 215 km/h on the Mumbai-Pune highway, leading to questions about the 36-year-old's safety.
Interestingly, Rohit Sharma drove to the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune instead of taking the team bus alongside his other national colleagues.
Netizens pointed out that Rohit Sharma shouldn't have traveled alone and should have joined his teammates in the team bus, which moves on the road under police protection with an escort vehicle accompanying it in front.
Reportedly, the Lamborghini Urus, which Rohit Sharma was driving, bore his world record score of 264 in One-Day Internationals (ODIs).
Rohit Sharma's reckless act ignited a flurry of reactions on social networks, including Twitter and Reddit.
Rohit Sharma gets 3 challan #RohitSharma pic.twitter.com/oJtaJPzwsK
— Arpit Verma (@AV18mth) October 18, 2023
The punishment for this kind of negligence should be suspension of driving license.
What kind of a MOFO would drive at this speed when a few months back, Rishabh Pant started his 2nd life. #rohitsharma #challan pic.twitter.com/tCCCsBea19
— bulbul (@nitesh157) October 19, 2023
@ImRo45 driving license should be revoked for good after it was found that he was over speeding 03 times on Pune Expressway. 03 Challan also have been issued @MTPHereToHelp @BCCI.
He is endangering others life as well as his own. #CWC23INDIA #indiavsbangladesh #RohitSharma𓃵— Ajay Jwaraya™ (@AjayJwaraya) October 19, 2023
Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma led India to another convincing victory against Bangladesh, with Virat Kohli's majestic unbeaten 103 being the highlight of their run chase in Pune.
After Bangladesh won the toss and decided to bat first, India found themselves in trouble with their opponents dominating the proceedings at the start of the contest.
With the Bangladesh score reading 93/0 in just over 14 overs, India needed someone to give them a breakthrough, and it was provided to them by Kuldeep Yadav.
Then, the Indian spinners, particularly Ravindra Jadeja, dried up the runs for Bangladesh, resulting in four wickets in quick succession.
Two more wickets from Jasprit Bumrah during the final ten overs meant that Bangladesh could only manage 256/7 in their allocated 50 overs.
In reply, Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill gave India an explosive start, with the former choosing to take the aerial route to punish the Bangladesh bowlers with boundaries and sixes.
Though Rohit Sharma couldn't complete his fifty, falling for 48 off 40 balls, he had given the Men in Blue the momentum they needed to put their foot on the accelerator to claim their fourth successive win in the World Cup.
After the India skipper departed, Shubman Gill completed his half-century before perishing in his bid to hit a six. Shubman Gill's wicket brought Shreyas Iyer to the crease. But he couldn't stay there for long, getting dismissed for 19.
The wickets of Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer did not deter Virat Kohli from motoring along nicely to 80, which is where things began to get interesting on the field.
With Virat Kohli needing 20 to complete his hundred and India requiring the same amount of runs to win the match, the Delhi-born cricketer elevated his game to attain the milestone.
The contribution of KL Rahul, Virat Kohli's batting partner during this concluding stages of the clash, was equally important as he aided the latter in his pursuit of a century.
It all began in the 39th over. Virat Kohli, still in the 70s, smashed the Bangladesh bowler Hasan Mahmud for a six to move into the 80s.
The 40th over saw Virat Kohli hit a boundary and six to enter into the 90s, giving the crowd genuine hope that the master batter was on his way to another hundred in the 50-over format.
Eventually, the situation came down to India needing two runs to win when Virat Kohli was three runs away from his ton.
Virat Kohli could only touch the three-figure mark by smacking the ball in the stands, which he did comfortably, thus securing his team's triumph and a hundred for himself.
After India's win, Virat Kohli was named the Player Of The Match award for his sensational innings.
In the post-match presentation, Mark Nicholas informed Virat Kohli that Ravindra Jadeja was the frontrunner to pick the Player Of The Match award before his century turned the tide in his favor.
“Well. Sorry for stealing it from Jaddu but I wanted to make a big contribution. I had a few fifties in World Cups but hadn't converted them into hundreds. Stay till the end was my motto today,” Virat Kohli said.
“The pitch was good and it allowed me to play my game. Hit through the line and hit it in the gap. There is a great atmosphere in the change room. We understand it's a long tournament and we have to create momentum in the change room to carry it on the field,” he added.
Captain Rohit Sharma also shared his views on the matter. He acknowledged that Virat Kohli deserved the Player Of The Match award ahead of Ravindra Jadeja, as the talismanic batter's hundred was a bit more valuable than the southpaw's two wickets.
“He (Ravindra Jadeja) was brilliant with the ball and took a brilliant catch. But a hundred is a hundred – you cannot beat that,” Rohit Sharma underlined.
On the other hand, KL Rahul revealed what he and Virat Kohli discussed when the 35-year-old was trying to get to his ton.
“He (Virat Kohli) was confused actually, he said ‘it would not look too nice to not take singles, it's still a World Cup, it's still a big stage and I don't want to look like I am trying to get the milestone'.
“I said ‘it's not won, but I mean we will still this very easily. If you can get to the milestone, you must try'. And he did that in the end,” KL Rahul told the host broadcaster Star Sports.
“I played a huge role in making it very interesting. When I walked in, there were still enough runs to get and I thought I would play a few shots and got a few more boundaries than I would have liked,” KL Rahul noted.
“Personally, it was good, but Kohli was nearing his hundred, it got really close. When there were 30 runs left, I said I will just block the ball and take singles and try and give you a strike,” he pointed out.
“He did say in the end that I made it look too close for comfort,” KL Rahul mentioned.
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