'Rohit Sharma makes an 85mph delivery look like it was bowled at 3mph': Michael Vaughan

Former England captain Michael Vaughan said Rohit Sharma makes an 85 miles per hour (mph) delivery look like it was bowled at 3mph when he plays a forward defence. Vaughan’s comments came after Rohit struck his eighth Test hundred and first in overseas conditions to take India to a comfortable position in the fourth Test match against England at The Oval.

“I can’t imagine what it feels like to bowl to him,” Vaughan said in BBC’s Test Match Special podcast.

“You charge in, you try and get as much effort into that delivery. You are bowling around 85 miles an hour and Rohit plays like a forward defence as if you bowled like 3 miles an hour. And he also plays strokes, whips it through the on-side and it's kind of that look – “that was rubbish," Vaughan said.

Rohit, who hit 14 fours and a six in his 127-run innings, looked in sublime touch against the likes of James Anderson, Ollie Robinson, Chris Woakes and Craig Overton.

Vaughan said Rohit is the kind of player who makes batting in pressure situations look easy.

“I like watching stylish players. I like watching players that make the pressure situation seem not like any pressure at all. Rohit Sharma is that player,” he said.

Rohit was looking set for a daddy hundred when he got a top edge to an Ollie Robinson delivery which appeared to have stopped on him.

Rohit, in the process put together important partnerships with opener KL Rahul and No.3 Cheteshwar Pujara to help India take a decent lead that might prove to be enough for the Indian attack to put the pressure right back on England in the fourth innings.

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Rohit also became the first Indian batsman to score hundreds in all three formats in England.

"The four-man seam attack that we have seen bowling today, around 82-84 miles an hour, trying to wear them down on a length. It is absolutely fine when it is swinging around," Vaughan said.

Earlier on Sunday, India's innings lasted 148.2 overs. Shardul Thakur (60 off 72) struck his second fifty of the match and shared a hundred run stand with Rishabh Pant (50 off 106) to put India in a strong position. The visitors posted a mammoth total of 446 in the second innings, setting a 368-run target for England.

At stumps, England's score read 77/0, still needing 291 runs for the win with all ten wickets in hand. For the hosts, Burns (31*) and Hameed (43*) are at the crease.