Rohit Sharma is the best captain in IPL after MS Dhoni: Virender Sehwag

After being stunned in the tournament opener against Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians retaliated in their second IPL 2020 game and registered an emphatic 49-run victory against Kolkata Knight Riders. It was MI skipper Rohit Sharma who rose to the occasion against KKR and slammed 80 runs to bag the Man of the Match award.

Rohit’s match-winning knock came just a day after CSK skipper MS Dhoni was criticized for his decision against Rajasthan Royals. Hunting down a challenging 216-run total against RR, CSK eventually fizzled out on 200 and questions were raised over Dhoni’s demotion in the batting order.

Rohit, on the other hand, pulled off a spectacular knock to lead his side from the front. The ‘Hitman’ is the most successful IPL captain, having led MI to four IPL titles. Despite Rohit’s accolades, Dhoni is rated higher by fans due to CSK’s consistency in the tournament. The Chennai franchise has the highest win percentage among all teams and has also made it to the playoff stage in each edition of their IPL appearance.

Meanwhile, after Rohit’s stellar batting show against KKR, former India opener Virender Sehwag rated him ‘best captain in IPL after Dhoni’. Speaking to Gaurav Kapoor on Cricbuzz, Sehwag hailed the strategies that Rohit opted for against KKR.

Rohit Sharma’s tactical changes are outstanding: Virender Sehwag

“I have always been saying that Rohit Sharma is the best captain in this tournament after MS Dhoni. The manner in which he understands the game and makes tactical changes, it’s simply outstanding,” said Sehwag.

Just when Rana and Karthik looked to have settled, Rohit brought Kieron Pollard in the attack and Sehwag lauded the MI skipper for his bold move. According to Sehwag, any other captain would’ve brought left-handed spinner, Krunal Pandya.

“Had there been any other captain instead of Rohit in the game against Kolkata, he would’ve used Krunal Pandya against Nitish Rana — move that would’ve backfired,” Viru opined.

“Instead, Rohit put Pollard up against Rana and the West Indian kept the run-flow under check. Pollard’s timing also has to be noticed here. Had Rohit brought him against a set right-hander, he would’ve conceded more runs. Usually, Pollard concedes around 25 rouns in an over, but that wasn’t the case this time,” he added.

"MS Dhoni के बाद Rohit Sharma हैं टूर्नामेंट के बेस्ट कप्तान," @virendersehwag @My11Circle प्रेजेंट्स #CricbuzzLIVE हिन्दी पर #KKRvMI #RohitSharma #MSDhoni #Cricket pic.twitter.com/Upw7FtWzH2

— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) September 24, 2020