Rohit Sharma breaks Virat Kohli record, levels with Sachin Tendulkar

Sydney witnessed a historic day for Indian cricket as Rohit Sharma slammed his 33rd ODI hundred and remained unbeaten on 121 off 125 balls, steering India to a commanding nine-wicket win over Australia in the third ODI at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Saturday.

Alongside Virat Kohli, who scored 74 not out off 81 balls, Rohit shared an unbeaten 168-run partnership for the second wicket, ensuring India avoided a series whitewash.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Rohit’s century was his ninth against Australia, surpassing Kohli’s eight centuries against the Aussies and marking another milestone in his illustrious career. With this feat, Rohit is now joint-highest century-maker in ODIs alongside Sachin Tendulkar against Australia. Remarkably, Rohit achieved the milestone in just 49 innings, compared to Tendulkar’s 70 innings and Kohli’s 51 against Australia.

Rohit also created history by becoming the batter with the most ODI hundreds by a visiting player in Australia, scoring six centuries down under, one more than Kohli’s five in 32 innings. Legendary Sri Lankan Kumar Sangakkara had also scored five centuries in Australia but took 49 innings.

In total, Rohit now has 50 international centuries — 12 in Tests, 33 in ODIs, and five in T20Is.The victory was set up brilliantly by the Indian bowlers. Despite Shubman Gill losing the toss, and asked to field first, India managed to restrict Australia to a below-par total of 236.

Mohammed Siraj dismissed Marnus Labuschagne in the first powerplay, while spinners Axar Patel and Washington Sundar kept things tight. Harshit Rana’s incisive spell (4/39) wrapped up the innings.In reply, India raced to 68 without loss in the first 10 overs. The experienced Rohit-Kohli duo then took charge, delighting fans with a masterclass of batting at the SCG, almost turning the venue into a home ground for India. Kohli recorded his 75th ODI fifty and surpassed Kumar Sangakkara to become the second-highest run-scorer in ODIs, while Rohit’s 33rd century cemented his place among the game’s modern legends.With an unbeaten 168-run stand and victory with 11.3 overs to spare, India celebrated both a memorable win and historic individual milestones for its batting superstars.