India batter Rohit Sharma had called time on his T20I career back in June 2024. The announcement had come right after India won the T20 World Cup. Virat Kohli first put curtains on his T20I career after the title win and Rohit followed him with a similar announcment. The next day Ravindra Jadeja too quit the format at the highest level and this saw three veterans of the game leaving huge void in the team. After more than 10 months of the announcement, Rohit spoke his heart out while talking about the decision.
“Had we not won the T20 World Cup, I would have announced my retirement anyway because I had tried enough. It is (was) not fair for me to continue. You have to give chances to others. But after winning, you feel that you still have it in you; you are playing well, and you have given the result as well, so why not? Why not continue?” Rohit told journalist Vimal Kumar on latter’s YouTube channel.
“Because this place that you have earned, by no means came to you just like that. You worked really hard for it. I know what all I have done in my life and all the things I have gone through to get this. So I have an idea of all these things. So why do you want to leave? If you are batting well, giving results, then why?” he added.
While announcing his T20I retirement back in 2024, Rohit had said, “This was my last game as well. No better time to say goodbye. I wanted this (trophy) badly. It’s very hard to put in words.”
“This what I wanted and it happened. I was very desperate for this in my life. Happy that we crossed the line this time,” he had added.
His announcement had come on the heels of India’s second T20 World Cup title, a victory that brought immense joy and pride to the nation.
Rohit’s retirement marked the end of an illustrious T20I career during which he became the format’s highest scorer, amassing 4231 runs in 159 matches. He also holds the record for the most centuries in T20 internationals, with five to his name. His T20I journey began with the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007, where he was a key player in India’s first title win. As captain, he led India to their second title, further cementing his legacy.
Earlier this month, Rohit also called time on his Test career. He is now active only in ODIs for India, while continues to play T20 cricket for Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League.
Topics mentioned in this article
