Rohit Sharma in the third T20I (Courtesy: BCCI.TV)

Former South Africa captain AB de Villiers made a straight-forward assessment of Rohit Sharma”s Super Over call in the third T20 against Afghanistan which stirred controversy. In the longest-ever T20I match which went to a double Super Over, the Team India captain came out to bat twice after retiring out in the first Super Over.

In the first Super Over, the hosts needed 17 runs to win off six deliveries. Sharma scored 14 runs before opting to retire out and walk back to the dugout. However, he returned to bat again in the second Super Over, which was not by the umpires or match referee. During the post-match expert session, Parthiv Patel, a part of the panel pointed out at the goof-up which caused a stir on social media.

De Villiers stated that a batter cannot bat in the second Super Over if he has declared himself out in the first. “Double Super Over unbelievable (smiles). You can”t bat again if you are declared out in the first super over. I think maybe they will claim that he was retired hurt due to an injury and maybe it was a scoring mistake to show him out,” De Villiers said on his YouTube channel.

The South Africa legend was, meanwhile, in all praises for prolific T20 batter Rinku Singh. The KKR batter who has almost cemented his place in the shortest format of the side is considered as the finisher ahead of the 2024 T20 World Cup. He played a whirlwind knock of 69 runs off 39 deliveries, including two boundaries and six sixes, to rescue India from 22/4 to 212/4, taking the match to Super Over.

“Rinku is a fantastic player, a match-winner, and it is good to see him become consistent as well. You need to be a consistent player who is always trying to win games for your team.”