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Rohit Sharma v Virendar Sehwag

Which player is better overall in all 3 formats of the game?

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Slog

Slog

Senior Test Player
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Who is the better overall player including all 3 formats:
Test, ODIs and T20s (which includes IPL)
 
Sehwag better in tests, much better like Ferrari vs bullock cart comparison.

Rohit marginally better in ODIs, Sehwag's 35/105 stats in 1999-2013 era is pretty good but Rohit is an ATG.

T20s unfair to compare because by the time the format became popular Sehwag was close to end of his career. His sharp decline courtesy slower reflexes and hand-eye co-ordination started in 2011.

Overall Sehwag comfortably.
 
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Rohit Sharma is better. Sehwag was a flat track welder, oh I mean to say bully.
 
Sehwag was superior in Test.

Rohit is superior in LOI.

I think Sehwag wins because he was not too bad in LOI also.
 
Sehwag marginally. He's incomparably better than Rohit in tests, whereas Rohit is much ahead in LOIs.
 
There's no real comparison till Sharma plays more than a hundred tests for India. Currently, Sharma's career is possibly at the same level as Navjot Sidhu or Sanjay Manjrekar.
 
Viru has close to 9000 runs in Test cricket. This is not even a comparison.

ODIs you can compare both evenly and Sharma would be the better batsman
 
Rohit haas comfortably surpassed Sehwag in Limited Overs. He obviously won’t match his numbers in Tests, but it has a lot to do with India’s conservatism. They should have opened with him since 2014-2015 when he had established himself as a top class ODI opener. It would have given him a good 7-8 year run as a Test opener.

All this talk of him struggling overseas is overblown. He is a great player of bounce and would have done well in Australia, where the kookaburra hardly does anything. He would do well everywhere except England, South Africa and New Zealand, but how many Indian openers have excelled in all those countries?
 
Mamoon said:
Rohit haas comfortably surpassed Sehwag in Limited Overs. He obviously won’t match his numbers in Tests, but it has a lot to do with India’s conservatism. They should have opened with him since 2014-2015 when he had established himself as a top class ODI opener. It would have given him a good 7-8 year run as a Test opener.

All this talk of him struggling overseas is overblown. He is a great player of bounce and would have done well in Australia, where the kookaburra hardly does anything. He would do well everywhere except England, South Africa and New Zealand, but how many Indian openers have excelled in all those countries?
Click to expand...

Murali Vijay and KL Rahul (to some extent) blocked his way in Tests! (As you say the 2014 to 2018 period) You should also remember that Rohit not only failed to get into tests as opener, but also failed to make into the middle order as well (No.6 was vacant for most times, where we actually played an extra bowler at times because our No.6 batsman was so poor! It should actually have been very easy for a batsman of caliber of Rohit to get into the side with such less competition! In fact even Rahane lost his touch since 2-3 years!) Also we forget how inconsistent he was even in ODIs in the early part of his career! He is around since 2007 but only established completely after 2014 as you say! He was in and around only because of the SPECIAL TALENT he possessed as we all knew, otherwise he would got discarded long back! Also it has got to do with the lack of replacements during that time (with all the old horses going/fading away... Ganguly, Sachin, Dravid, Sehwag, Gambhir, etc...) there were lot of vacant places in the side! In fact he established properly only after he became ODI opener! He was never tried as opener before because of the presence of Sehwag/Ganguly/Sachin/Gambhir.... The decision to make him open was a masterstroke!

And now I don't mind him opening for India in Tests given the lack of resources & the inconsistency shown by others! At least he can be a monster on flat pitches (we are seeing guys like Rahul struggling even at home against teams like WI) So its not a bad thing to try Rohit now because anyhow even others fail in tough conditions (as our openers failed in SA & England - which cost us the series!) At least Rohit can capitalize when there is slightest of flatness in the pitch (at least if he somehow survives a tough session and gets into an easier session with tired bowlers - dried up pitches, he can capitalize on that! Not always the pitches will be dangerous/threatening in SENA countries there will be a case/chance where you can have easy time), he could have probably won us one of those odd matches like how Hardik Pandya won us one match in England in an opposite way - i.e., the pitch becoming too friendly for bowlers! (And eventually that would have made the difference and won us the series, especially in South Africa where at one stage it all came down to a point which team had better "Strike Rate" in batting than the other - because it was hard to survive on those pitches! You can see the scoreboards even today - India lost those two matches simply because of poor RR where both teams more or less played the same amount of overs
- in fact India mostly played more number of overs than South Africa - they were able to stay longer but couldn't score much! Rohit would have made that difference!)

So its the right decision if Rohit is made the opener for some while now until he loses the form (I think now if he loses his form he will lose that form even in LOIs, which might happen when he reaches his retiring age in coming years!) But it was not the case in 2014, he was not that consistent actually even in ODIs... But we were accommodating him because of his special talent, but his special talent became insignificant in Tests, because "Tests" required proper stability & consistency! But now we have reached to a stage where even a player like him can be handy in Tests! (In fact "Test Opening" was an issue for us throughout our history since Gavaskar retired probably! Only Sehwag fulfilled that role to a large extent and maybe Gambhir, Sidhu & now Vijay showed some consistency & stability for some period! We always had formidable middle order but always lacked openers more than bowlers - that's the reason why we continuously lost overseas) In fact it was only after the inclusion of Sehwag into our Fab-Four that we started to win more matches overseas - e.g., won in Pakistan, England and narrowly missed even Australia...

With Rahul's decline & Shaw's issues - Rohit & Agarwal are the men for opening at this point - but I think one of them might give way for someone else in future. Personally I feel we need a left handed proper Test Opener (not Dhawan) to combat on seaming conditions overseas to make it difficult for the bowlers!
 
Slog said:
Who is the better overall player including all 3 formats:
Test, ODIs and T20s (which includes IPL)
Click to expand...

It was bizzarre Sehwag was not a consistent player in the one dayers. He loves test match field set up where he gets a lot of gaps. But Sehwag is a different beast in Tests. He can start hitting from ball one unlike Rohit who needs some time.
 
Mamoon said:
Rohit haas comfortably surpassed Sehwag in Limited Overs. He obviously won’t match his numbers in Tests, but it has a lot to do with India’s conservatism. They should have opened with him since 2014-2015 when he had established himself as a top class ODI opener. It would have given him a good 7-8 year run as a Test opener.

All this talk of him struggling overseas is overblown. He is a great player of bounce and would have done well in Australia, where the kookaburra hardly does anything. He would do well everywhere except England, South Africa and New Zealand, but how many Indian openers have excelled in all those countries?
Click to expand...

Sehwag averages in 20s in each of NZ, England and South Africa so got purposes of
This comparison failure there is frankly irrelevant
 
Sehwag is easily better in tests but than Rohit is easily better in LO. I think Sehwag is overall better. But if Rohit can have 2/3 years of decent form in tests , than I think he will surpass Sehwag.
 
Slog said:
Who is the better overall player including all 3 formats:
Test, ODIs and T20s (which includes IPL)
Click to expand...

Tests:- Sehwag by miles( Rohit can't play spin or swing or even variable bounce)
ODIs/ T20s:- Rohit


Overall:- Sehwag
 
Sehwag retired with 9000 test runs at an average of 50

He's one of the greatest test cricketers ever

That obviously puts him leagues above Rohit for the time being
 
freelance_cricketer said:
Sehwag retired with 9000 test runs at an average of 50

He's one of the greatest test cricketers ever

That obviously puts him leagues above Rohit for the time being
Click to expand...

This is coming from.a die hard Hitman fan.

But come on Sehwag was Sehwag. Loved him bash Pakistan :yk
 
<B>Can Rohit Sharma be considered an ATG without being great in tests?</B>

He is easily the second most celebrated star of Indian cricket of this generation after Kohli. What are the chances of him becoming an all-time great by the time he retires?
 
Ab Fan said:
<B>Can Rohit Sharma be considered an ATG without being great in tests?</B>

He is easily the second most celebrated star of Indian cricket of this generation after Kohli. What are the chances of him becoming an all-time great by the time he retires?
Click to expand...

May be. But India surely cannot give him a long rope of 5 years like what he had from 2008-2013 till he turned opener.

In tests, technique is more required and a normal avg of 40 with blunting out attacks is what is more welcome than high strike rates with getting out under the first 5-10 overs (which is more likely with Rohit.) In my opinion, rohit is not test material. Better he concentrates and finish his career on high in ODIs and T20s which are his stronger suites.

How Sehwag failed to carry his test success into ODIs is still a mystery to me.
 
Boult vs Rohit will be a pleasure watching play in test series assuming Boult is fit for it.
 
Rohit is going to be brutally exposed in the upcoming NZ tests. Just wait and watch.
 
Rohit will be a sitting duck against moving ball. One reason he hasn't done well in Tests is he can't rotate the strike. In Tests facing the same bowler for 6 balls allow them to set you up. If he can somehow find a way to get to the other end his career will improve. Otherwise one of the 6 balls will get him.
 
Varun said:
Rohit is going to be brutally exposed in the upcoming NZ tests. Just wait and watch.
Click to expand...

jnaveen1980 said:
Rohit will be a sitting duck against moving ball. One reason he hasn't done well in Tests is he can't rotate the strike. In Tests facing the same bowler for 6 balls allow them to set you up. If he can somehow find a way to get to the other end his career will improve. Otherwise one of the 6 balls will get him.
Click to expand...

Tbh I haven’t watched him recently at all but his recent record suggests he’s turned a corner around so not sure why you are judging him on the basis of his play and application from few years ago.
 
Don't want to compare Rohit Sharma with GOAT test opener Virender Sehwag. 50 @ 82 in tests is stuff of dreams.
 
Sehwag didn't "change" the way tests were played because if you change the way a game is played, you see more players play it like you. But that didn't happen. There was only one Sehwag.
 
BreadPakoda said:
Don't want to compare Rohit Sharma with GOAT test opener Virender Sehwag. 50 @ 82 in tests is stuff of dreams.
Click to expand...

This. Although Rohit is a certified ATG and the best loi opener of our generation but Sehwag's achievements in tests is just too otherworldly to be compared with anybody.
 
Varun said:
Rohit is going to be brutally exposed in the upcoming NZ tests. Just wait and watch.
Click to expand...

It ain't the dog in the fight that matters,
It's the fight in the dog that does!

This is a cool statement also because i said ain't instead of isn't.
 
Sehwag 's importance in that LOI team is a bit underrated. Used to set the tone very early - the quality of his runs cannot be given enough importance.
 
Sehwag lightyears ahead all formats combined. Sehwag the Test player was one of the top-3 I have ever seen.
 
Sehwag was master of blistering starts.

Hitman early up plays quite safe and slow. He gradually builds momentum and after 100-150 he takes it to a different level. A level even Sehwag, ABD, Gayle can't match.
 
Keep in mind Sehwag played the way he did pre-T20.
 
Sehwag in tests, Rohit in LOIs. Averaging 58 as an opener with a strike rate of 92 is miles better than Sehwag even accounting for the different era.
 
<B>Can Rohit have a decent enough career in tests?</B>

His home average is 88 and away average is 26.
 
Ab Fan said:
<B>Can Rohit have a decent enough career in tests?</B>

His home average is 88 and away average is 26.
Click to expand...

wow has there ever been such a gulf post-30 Tests
 
Slog said:
wow has there ever been such a gulf post-30 Tests
Click to expand...

I think Usman Khwaja was close as well but his home average has dropped drastically in the past 1.5-2 years. Can't recall well. But he has two away hundreds.

Coming to Rohit, this is his away average. So, this will improve as I think he will do well in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh when he plays next, and maybe Australia too (but he will be opening so not sure).

Rohit doesn't have more than one cycle of tour left in him, so no matter how much improvement he makes won't be in elite league in tests. But for this era, he can be rated as one of successful players in all formats.
 
When England tours India next year, we must play Rohit as opener in the team. He was a beast vs South Africa, can really take on the bowling and demoralize it.
 
Rohit reliving memories of Sehwag with this incredible innings. It is just a small glimpse of what he is capable, and what he would have done, had India trusted him as an opener 6-7 years ago and stuck with him.

They had the next Sehwag in their hands and they never realized it until it was somewhat too late.

Few better sights in cricket than Rohit asserting his dominance at the crease.
 
Mamoon said:
Rohit reliving memories of Sehwag with this incredible innings. It is just a small glimpse of what he is capable, and what he would have done, had India trusted him as an opener 6-7 years ago and stuck with him.

They had the next Sehwag in their hands and they never realized it until it was somewhat too late.

Few better sights in cricket than Rohit asserting his dominance at the crease.
Click to expand...
Dude only playing ton in asian condition is not work. Shewag dominate in overseas also, thats why he played as opener for soo long, which rohit cant do.
 
dravidthewall said:
Dude only playing ton in asian condition is not work. Shewag dominate in overseas also, thats why he played as opener for soo long, which rohit cant do.
Click to expand...

Rohit would have scored a few hundreds outside Asia as well had India persisted with him as an opener since 2014-15.

He is a better all-round player than Sehwag.

Rohit didn’t work in the middle-order in LOIs and it didn’t work in Test cricket either. India though refused to trust him as an opener because of the narrative that he will fail overseas, but apart from Vijay in his purple patch, no Indian opener of his generation has performed outside Asia consistently.

You cannot leave a player like Rohit out. It is criminal. He should have been trusted as an opener ever since he transformed himself into a world class ODI opener.
 
Rohit's test career as an opener has just begun. He will be the first among current Indian batsmen to get a triple.

Meanwhile, his critics can keep crying :mw1
 
Rohit much better in ODIs,Viru lot better in Tests

Overall Viru had more impact
 
pillionrider said:
Rohit's test career as an opener has just begun. He will be the first among current Indian batsmen to get a triple.

Meanwhile, his critics can keep crying :mw1
Click to expand...

It should have begun years ago. India gave Dhawan 34 Tests as opener, and Rohit is better than him. He should have had 40+ Tests as opener by now.

This whole agenda against his credentials outside Asia would have had some credibility if other Indian openers were performing consistently outside Asia.

Since Vijay’s purple patch ended, no opener has performed consistently overseas.
 
Mamoon said:
It should have begun years ago. India gave Dhawan 34 Tests as opener, and Rohit is better than him. He should have had 40+ Tests as opener by now.
Click to expand...

Yeah a crying shame.

Now that he is widely recognized as one of the greatest ODI openers ever, it's easy to forget that this was pretty much the same story back when he started opening in ODI cricket - the same type of people crying, saying Mumbai lobby, lazy, unfit, ***** and so on. Even the other day some guys on a group call I was on were whining that he gets too many opportunities and is favoured.

Anyway, he took a while to get his first ODI hundred as an opener if I remember right, and then had phases of poor runs before the screaming doubles shut people up. At least in ODIs :rabada2
 
pillionrider said:
Yeah a crying shame.

Now that he is widely recognized as one of the greatest ODI openers ever, it's easy to forget that this was pretty much the same story back when he started opening in ODI cricket - the same type of people crying, saying Mumbai lobby, lazy, unfit, ***** and so on. Even the other day some guys on a group call I was on were whining that he gets too many opportunities and is favoured.

Anyway, he took a while to get his first ODI hundred as an opener if I remember right, and then had phases of poor runs before the screaming doubles shut people up. At least in ODIs :rabada2
Click to expand...

Was it?He got 80 odd IIRC in Mohali and then opened in CT 2013 where he did well
 
Saurav said:
Was it?He got 80 odd IIRC in Mohali and then opened in CT 2013 where he did well
Click to expand...

Yeah it was. Seems hard to imagine now. Even I can't remember the extent. What I remember though is furiously texting things like, "if that shot had come off, he'd have got a 100", and so on to skeptical friends.
 
Let's not overrate Rohit just yet. He may have etched his name in limited-overs history as one of the best ever. But in tests he has ALOT to prove and is for all intents and purposes, still a home-track bully. You can't even compare him to Sehwag who was a freak of nature in test cricket. No opener in history has scored as many runs as him, at such a high strike strike rate, over such a long period of time while averaging close to 50.
 
Another hugely impactful innings that proved to be the difference maker with the bat for the second consecutive Test.

A mighty, mighty player in all formats of the game and one of the prized wickets in the game today.

He is one of the greatest batsmen India has ever produced.

They have criminally underutilized him in Test cricket. They should have opened with him years ago and he would have ended up with 25+ Test tons.
 
Two top knocks in difficult conditions. I am convinced he will do well anywhere in Asia. His performance in Australia was pretty good too based on the starts he gave. But he is still far from being considered a world class test batsman as he need to hit a few away hundreds to his name.

However, it will not be wrong to say that during his generation, he was the second best Indian batsman after Virat Kohli based on all formats performance.
 
Mamoon said:
Another hugely impactful innings that proved to be the difference maker with the bat for the second consecutive Test.

A mighty, mighty player in all formats of the game and one of the prized wickets in the game today.

He is one of the greatest batsmen India has ever produced.

They have criminally underutilized him in Test cricket. They should have opened with him years ago and he would have ended up with 25+ Test tons.
Click to expand...

He looks uncomfortable against Leach and badly wants to smash him. But he's had the team situation mumbling away in his ears and has tried to be responsible. A trait that seems surprising to be associated with him.

His body language has also changed of late on the field. He looks more confident and now talks and walks around like a leader and an important batsman in the team. In the 1st innings, he was giving tips to Rahane - something I've never seen him feeling confident enough to do. Until he started opening.
 
pillionrider said:
He looks uncomfortable against Leach and badly wants to smash him. But he's had the team situation mumbling away in his ears and has tried to be responsible. A trait that seems surprising to be associated with him.

His body language has also changed of late on the field. He looks more confident and now talks and walks around like a leader and an important batsman in the team. In the 1st innings, he was giving tips to Rahane - something I've never seen him feeling confident enough to do. Until he started opening.
Click to expand...
Looked good against Anderson and Broad too when the ball was swinging.
 
jeeteshssaxena said:
Looked good against Anderson and Broad too when the ball was swinging.
Click to expand...

To be fair that ball hardly moved in this test when coming from the hands of a pacer :rabada2

But I think he can have a good tour of England, NZ and SA. His problems seem to be confidence-based and he seems to be finally figuring out his test game. I think he's also finally realized that he needs a test record to be counted among the greats. As he gets more secure about his spot, he will unleash a triple soon :smith
 
Rohit Sharma Completed 1000 runs vs ENG

Indians to Score 1000 runs against most Opponents

9 - Sachin
8 - Ganguly
8 - Dravid
7 - Rohit*
7 - Kohli
7 - Dhoni
7 - Sehwag
7 - Azhar
6 - Laxman
 
I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that if he had been given a consistent run as an opener since 2013/14 he would be a mega ATG by now rivaling the fab 4. He has an immense ability and hunger to score runs matched only by the fab 4. Many probably won't agree with me but I think he is going to retire as an undisputed test ATG too, no one and I mean no one catches up as fast as Rohit.
 
Last time KL Rahul got 5 tests in England, lets see how many Rohit gets and how well he is going to play there. :inti
 
Its not stats, but ability. Its obviously Rohit, he is better all-round player and would have gotten more runs in both format had he been a opener.

Sehwag was not the skillful player, yet he was unique. He played attacking game in a time when bowlers were treated with utter respect. Thus, the influence of Sehwag is far greater than Rohit.
 
but seriously, Sehwag made India openers a feared attack. was good in ODI too. Voted for him as he was a fearless trend setter. Rohit is a great player in ODI and T20, struggle to cement his place in tests and will if scores consistently and scores triple tons in tests.
 
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