Weighty encounter today

Chennai : Rohit Sharma, one of the most revered cricketers of his generation, would carry the audible expectations of a billion people when his Indian team starts its high-stakes World Cup campaign against Australia here on Sunday.

For the sports aficionados, the Asian Games campaign with 100-plus medals was a juicy appetiser and they are bracing up for exotic main course from country's most followed sports team. Led by a genial Pat Cummins, Australia are a tough yet likable bunch, who are ready for a good scrap at the Chepauk where both the teams have had some epic battles in the past be it the tied Test of 1986 or the close Reliance Cup game the next year or the 2001 Test series-decider.

If India's batting is world class, Australia's pace attack is top notch but does it have the legs to survive the cruel Chennai heat will be a million-dollar question. There are 15 different men, with different shades of character coming together for a common cause. A skipper, who at 36, knows that his legacy will be defined by whether he holds aloft the coveted Cup on November 19th. Then there is near 35-year-old Virat Kohli, arguably the best all-format batter of his generation. He needs three more centuries to get past iconic Sachin Tendulkar the man he had carried on his shoulders on a beautiful Wankhede night 12 summers back. After 12 seasons, Kohli is standing at the cusp of where Tendulkar stood in 2011.

The only difference is Kohli has one World Cup in his kitty. So does Rohit (2007 World T20) and 37-year-old Ravichandran Ashwin (2011). But those were trophies where the narratives were set by others and these juniors played their part to the 'T'. But this edition is their edition. Rohit wants to own this stage. So does Kohli and Ashwin. A 34-year-old Ravindra Jadeja or a 33-year-old Mohammed Shami do not want to be left behind. Or a Jasprit Bumrah, who would like it to be ‘Now or Never'.