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India
In the league phase of WTC, India was taking on South Africa in a home series when Rohit Sharma laid the base for the highest partnership. After transitioning into one of the best opening batsmen in limited-overs, he had the chance to prove himself in the long format of cricket.
Rohit Sharma used the series against South Africa to take his record to a new height. He played an important part in the Indian side's qualification to the WTC final. Sharma displayed immense maturity in handling the new ball in the first hour that led to his success as an opener in the long format.
In that match, Rohit Sharma and Mayank Agarwal were the opening batsmen for team India. There was moisture in the pitch and South African ballers got the best of the batsmen during the tournament.
Sharma and Agarwal had a control percentage of 72.7 and 73.08 respectively at the end of the first hour. They successfully laid the foundation of a monumental total for the Indian side in the first innings.
After the first hour, the Indian conditions stopped providing any assistance to the South African bowlers. The pitch dried out and the spinners lost the control to manage the scoring rate of the Indian side. The African bowlers were rendered helpless.
Virat Kohli took a risk in allowing Rohit Sharma to open for India midway in the WTC league phase. But it played in the team’s favor and proved to be a masterstroke.
The opening batsmen dominated South African bowlers in style
Both the openers from the Indian side went after Dane Piedt without worrying and managed to clear the boundary ropes. They dominated in such a way that Keshav Maharaj went for 66 in 23 overs while Dane Piedt gave away 43 runs in seven overs.
The match against South Africa established Mayank Agarwal as a premier opener for team India along with Rohit Sharma. They helped India edge closer to seizing control of the tournament.
Sharma and Agarwal made 317 runs for the first wicket. They recorded the third-highest opening partnership in Tests for India. The 410-run partnership between Vinoo Mankad and Pankaj Roy is the second-highest opening partnership. However, the top spot belongs to the 413-run partnership between Virendra Sehwag and Rahul Dravid against Pakistan in 2006.