Ahead of the second ODI between India and Australia at the Adelaide Oval, legendary wicketkeeper-batter Adam Gilchrist reunited with his former IPL teammate and ex-India captain Rohit Sharma. The duo shared a warm moment as Gilchrist clicked a selfie with Rohit and recalled their first meeting back in 2008.
Posting the picture on Instagram, the Aussie great shared a heartfelt message for the Indian opener, which read, “This bloke reminded me today it was standing on this very ground, the beautiful @adelaideoval, when we first met each other in 2008. It was just when we’d both been bought by the Deccan Chargers, in the very first @iplt20 auction. From there, a friendship was born.
"An old bull leaving international cricket, partnering with a young bull on the rise to becoming one of India's greats. @rohitsharma45 it’s been a pleasure to play against and with you, to observe you as a broadcaster and fan, and even better to know you as a mate. #kepke” Before the second ODI started, Gilchrist spoke to Ravi Shastri on the field, for Fox Sports, as the latter asked the former to comment on Rohit’s mindset. Gilly said:
"Oh, I gotta say, he’s looking and sounding very relaxed. He was reminding me it was on this very venue where we first met back in 2008, just after the IPL auction had taken place, and we worked out we were going to be teammates. It was the old bull and the young bull. I was on my way out of international cricket and he was coming in, but, no he’s keen to get out here.”
Rohit made a mark at the Oval as he walked out with the bat to open the first innings for his side. After a sluggish start, the 37-year-old gained momentum and found his mojo to eventually finish with a 97-ball 73, contributing crucial runs to India’s tally as the team finished on 264/9 in 50 overs.
While Rohit was the top-scorer for his side, key contributions of 61 and 44 runs each by Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel, followed by Harshit Rana’s cameo of an 18-ball 24 meant India finished with a decent total of 264-9.