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Cape Town - The jury remains out on Rohit Sharma's legacy as a Test cricketer as much as his credentials in white ball cricket have been proven.
Rohit scored a century in India's demolition of Sri Lanka in Nagpur but the circumstances in which he scored the runs have left many unconvinced.
He came to the wicket with India already well ahead of the game and on their way to batting Sri Lanka out of the contest in Nagpur.
The batsman has struggled to break back into the Test team after injury saw him lose his place in early 2016.
Rohit is eager to be part of India tour to South Africa with the green pitches laid on for the Sri Lanka series intended to give Virat Kohli's charges some idea of what they will face.
With Hardik Pandya on the sidelines for this series an opportunity opened up for the man who holds the record for the highest individual score in ODI cricket.
Rohit said after the match concluded on day four: "Personally for me, it was very important as I was playing Test cricket after nearly 500 days.
"I have been waiting for this opportunity and I am glad that I could put some runs on the board for myself and the team.
"Really happy that it was worth waiting for so long. I clearly remember this was the ground where I got injured and I had to wait three years to make my Test debut.
"This ground has now given me something now to go back with. Very happy and pleased with the way we played."
Rohit plans to keep things simple and try to earn a permanent place in the world number one ranked Test team.
He added: "My plans are simple and clear. I don’t want to complicate things, which I have done in the past.
"When I came into the team, I just thought too much about it and gave too much importance.
"At the end of the day, it’s just a cricket match that you have to play, (so) don’t worry about anything else.
"Initially my focus was so much on Test cricket - 'oh no, this is Test cricket, I have to do well, I have to do this and that'. In thinking that, I lost a lot of focus and forgot what I was there for and what I needed to do.
"When I was inexperienced, when I just came into the team, there were a lot of things that I used to think about, but not anymore.
"I’ve passed that age and I shouldn’t be thinking what happened in the past. I should be ready for what is coming next, because that’s what matters.
"What has happened in the past is gone – you can never change it. For me, I can change things looking forward, and looking forward means the Delhi Test match and thereafter the one-day series and then the South Africa series."
Rohit looks set to have one more chance to prove himself in the longest format in the third Test against Sri Lanka in Delhi with proceedsings getting underway on Saturday (December 2).
