Mullanpur (Punjab) [India], May 30 : Mumbai Indians seasoned opener Rohit Sharma crossed the 7000-run milestone in the cash-rich league, becoming just the second after his long-time compatriot Virat Kohli to achieve the feat.
Rohit upped the ante during MI's pulsating Eliminator fixture against Gujarat Titans in Mullanpur. He notched a sizzling 81 from 50 deliveries to send the five-time champions into the driver's seat with a score of 228/5.
Rohit, who averaged barely above 15 before his rollicking display, took his guard, gunned down his past nightmares to cross the 7000-run mark in the cash-rich league, and became the second batter to join the exclusive club.
Gujarat twice had the opportunity to rob Rohit of his landmark occasion and avoid being clobbered. On the penultimate delivery of the second over, Coetzee dropped a sitter off Prasidh Krishna, allowing Rohit to survive an early scare when he stood at three.
In the next over, Rohit gave away a faint edge off Mohammed Siraj, but Kusal Mendis couldn't collect the ball in his gloves and floored the opportunity. The 38-year-old never looked back and enjoyed his night riddled with fortune.
He decimated GT's ball tweakers to establish his authority. He unleashed a relentless onslaught on Sai Kishore and then smoked the ball into the stands to add to Rashid Khan's agony and cross the 7000-run landmark in the IPL in the 9th over.
Rohit's record-breaking night came to an end in the 17th over when he tried to take on Prasidh but got deceived by the slower variation and deposited the ball into Rashid Khan's hands. Following his exploits, Rohit has 7038 runs under his belt in 271 matches at 29.82, with two centuries and 47 fifties and a best score of 109*.
It was sixes galore for Rohit as he cleared the boundary rope four times with brute force. Rohit crossed the 300 sixes mark in the IPL and joined 'Universal Boss' Chris Gayle for the elusive feat. Rohit has 302 sixes to his name, behind Gayle's record-breaking tally of 357 and Virat Kohli trailing in the third spot with 291 maximums.
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