T20 Mumbai

In just the second ball of the chase against Australia in the ODI series-decider, Rohit Sharma completed the milestone of scoring 9,000 runs in the format of the game and went onto to score a century that sealed the match for India at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday.

Chasing 287 for the win after made to bowl first, he got off the mark straight away with a pair of twos and became the seventh Indian batsman, and the third fastest in the world, to reach the landmark of 9,000 runs in ODI cricket.

Along with KL Rahul, he put on 69 for the opening wicket before the wicket-keeper departed. Thereafter, the Mumbai batsman teamed up with Virat Kohli to take the game away from the Aussies.

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"It was an important game, the decider, and we wanted to come out and enjoy ourselves," said Rohit Sharma, an Icon Player in the inaugural season of the T20 Mumbai league. "Once KL got out, it needed nobody better than the captain himself. The talk we had in the middle was that one of us wanted to keep going."

With Virat Kohli, he put on 137 for the second wicket and was dismissed in the 37th over well after he had completed his 29th career ton. He brought up his fifty in 56 balls and his hundred in 110 deliveries. He was eventually dismissed for 119 (128b 8x4 6x6) scored at a strike rate of 92.96 and named Man of the Match for his efforts.

"At no stage, did we want the momentum to go towards the opposition, I was middling the ball well, and I said I would be the one to take the chances," said Rohit Sharma, who has now slammed seven tons in his last 17 innings. "Days like this, if it comes off, it looks good. If we had lost a wicket in the middle, it would have been different.

"Australia always comes up with a good bowling attack. Their fast bowlers always challenge you with their variety and skills. The first two games, I was trying to do something different, and it didn't come off. Today I just wanted to be there, and I was able to stay till the 37th over."

Once he left, Shreyas Iyer came on to the crease to finish the job. He forged a 68-run stand with Virat Kohli before the skipper fell in the 46th over with India eventually sealing the game with seven wickets and 15 balls to spare. While Virat Kohli managed a 91-ball 89, Shreyas Iyer remained unbeaten on 44, scored in just 35 balls with the help of 6 fours and a six.

"I have seen (Australia) bowling and... of the matches I have played thus far, they are the best bowling attack," Shreyas Iyer said. "The performance came at the right time. I wanted to stay till the end."