It’s November 2nd, 2013. India and Australia are playing at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore. India is setting the target and it’s the first ball of the final over. A huge six is hit towards the covers, into the stands housing thousands of roaring fans, and the commentator’s voice booms, “He goes inside out! What a way to bring up 200 in One Day Internationals! They call him Hitman, and he’s arrived at the party!”

A 26-year-old had done the unthinkable - He had become the third man, after Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag to score a double century. He joined the run-scoring party a little late, but he came in with a bang, and with this innings, he had announced his intentions of staying at the top loud and clear.

Over the years, Rohit Sharma carved a respectable spot for himself in the Indian cricket team. His fanbase now knows no bounds, his accolades are uncountable, and he’s easily one of the most dependable players in the team today.

On the way to the spot that he is in right now, he wrote and rewrote multiple records and today, he is a holder of some elite ones too. On his 34th birthday, let’s have a glimpse at some of his best displays of the game.

The mammoth double centuries

Hitting a solitary double century in one’s ODI career itself is an achievement like no other. But this man, Rohit, has three to his name. His first one came in 2013 against Australia. His 209 (158) also had the most sixes in an ODI innings (16) in that game, until Eoin Morgan broke it in 2019.

The second of these came in November 2014. A massive 264 (173) against Sri Lanka. This knock had a whopping 33 fours and to date, it tops the rank list for most fours in a single innings. This is also the highest ODI score registered in ODIs so far, and rest assured, it won’t be broken in a long, long time.

The third of this lot came much more recently, in 2017, once again versus Sri Lanka. His 208* (153) had 13 fours and 12 sixes. He remains the only player to have three double centuries to his name.

A stellar World Cup outing

Rohit hit a high like no other during the 2019 World Cup in England. In 9 games, he cumulatively scored 648 runs, the most in that season across the teams. Striking at an average of 81 every game, he had one half-century and five centuries.

His five 100s came against South Africa, Australia, Pakistan, England and Bangladesh. In doing so, he also amassed six World Cup hundreds in his career, equalling record-holder Sachin Tendulkar.

Rohit’s pull shots - a dream to witness

If Rohit Sharma is at the crease with an incoming short ball, it almost guarantees a pull shot. It’s like the bowler asked to be pulled away to the boundary. The way he positions himself, frees his arms and whacks it towards the leg side - this is as pleasing as a cricketing shot could get.

The confidence he exudes while executing this shot and the superb middling of the ball to his bat shows why he is the King of pull shots.

You can try but you'll be 𝙥𝙪𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 towards watching this, again & again! 💙#OneFamily #MumbaiIndians #HappyBirthdayRohit #HitmanDay @ImRo45 pic.twitter.com/vwB5tpMvyC

— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) April 30, 2021

When Rohit is batting, his pull shots are nothing short of art in execution right in front of our eyes. We indeed are blessed to have seen him perform in real-time!

Most sixes by an Indian in international cricket

Rohit has the most number of sixes in international cricket for an Indian. He sits at the top with 436 maximums, and Dhoni comes next, at 359. Overall, he is the third-highest, behind Shahid Afridi (476) and Chris Gayle (535).

These are just rays of his brilliance that we’ve spoken about here. Given the run he is on right now, there is a promise for so much more, so many big things, and records to break.

Rohit Sharma is not just a cricketer, he is a sensation for admirers of his game across the globe. On his 34th birthday, as his fans, we do hope that his best is yet to come, and it will stay for a long time.