Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan heaped praise on the Indian captain Rohit Sharma after he scored a fine knock of 83 runs off just 67 balls in the first ODI against Sri Lanka at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati on Tuesday.

Rohit, who was making a return to International cricket after recovering from a thumb injury, was under the pump as he hasn’t been at his absolute best for the team in the recent past.

However, Rohit was able to hit the ground running against Sri Lanka as he timed the ball to perfection. The talisman also made the most of the pull shot to score his runs at a brisk pace.

Rohit added a fine opening alliance of 143 runs with Shubman Gill to give a perfect launch pad to his team to post a huge total.

“This is what we wanted to see when Rohit Sharma was coming back, that his fitness should be better, which we saw in the running between the wickets. But the best part was that the patient side of Rohit Sharma was seen in his batting, where he took his time,” said Pathan while speaking with Star Sports.

“It was seamless batting from Rohit Sharma right from the start when he hit his first four straight down the ground. After that, he was waiting for the balls to come onto his stumps,” Pathan added.

The former all-rounder added Rohit Sharma played to his strengths and delivered for the team.

“He played to his strengths. We saw the pull shots. We also saw him using his feet against the spinners and playing big shots straight down the ground. So he scored runs all around the park,” said Pathan.

India’s top three – Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, and Virat Kohli – were able to score big runs in the first game and Pathan feels these are positive signs for the team.

“These are great signs for Indian cricket where your experienced captain Rohit Sharma’s bat fired, we saw a century from the champion player Virat Kohli, and we saw good batting from Shubman Gill at the start,” Pathan added.

The second ODI is being played in Kolkata with Sri Lanka batting first.