Rohit Sharma joins Virat Kohli in announcing retirement from T20 internationals after leading India to World Cup glory
India captain Rohit Sharma announced that he was retiring from T20 international cricket after winning the World Cup in Saturday’s final against South Africa.
Rohit said he would continue for India in the Test and ODI formats but was stepping back from the shortest format. Rohit’s announcement came shortly after his teammate Virat Kohli also announced his retirement from T20 cricket for India.
“No better time to say goodbye,” Rohit said during the post-match press conference as he celebrated India’s historic second T20 World Cup title. The decision marks a fitting end to Rohit’s T20I career, as he began it with a World Cup win and concluded it with another. Between those 17 years, Rohit rose to unprecedented heights as a batter, finishing as the India’s highest run-scorer in T20Is with 4231 runs from 159 matches at an average of 32.05. His five centuries in the format is also the most by any Indian batter. He was made India’s full-time T20I captain in November of 2021 and capped off a memorable career with a 50th win as skipper.
“This was my last game as well. I’ve enjoyed since the time I started playing this format. I’ve loved every moment of this. This is what I wanted – I wanted to win the cup,” added Rohit, as he saluted the room, to applause from the media.
Having made his debut in the 2007 T20 World Cup against England – he did not get a chance to bat due to Yuvraj Singh’s belligerent hitting – Rohit’s first game for India in T20Is was against South Africa, where he marked his arrival, scoring a scintillating 50 not out and playing a useful hand in India’s win. As it turns out, Rohit’s last game happened to be against the same opponents as he rode into the sunset as India’s highest scorer at the T20 World Cup with 257 runs at a strike-rate of 156.7 and three very crucial half-centuries – against Ireland, Australia and England.
Indian sportspersons retiring on a high is rare – especially in cricket, which is what makes Rohit and Kohli’s decision command even more respect. At 36 and 35, Rohit and Kohli, albeit still effective – paved the way for the younger generation of players to take over. With the next T20 World Cup taking place in India in 2026, both identified the need to step away from the format for the future of Indian cricket. It also gives them both time to focus on ODIs and Tests with the Champions Trophy and World Test Championship final lined up next year. And who knows, if it all goes well, then Rohit and Kohli could also give one final crack at the 2027 World Cup in South Africa.
Rohit Sharma’s T20I retirement not on unexpected lines
The writing was on the wall. Rohit, along with Kohli, had disappeared from India’s T20I mould after India’s semifinal defeat against England in 2022 T20 World Cup. Having stayed almost 14 months away to prepare for the ODIs in the lead-up to the 50-overs World Cup, it seemed as if BCCI and Indian cricket as a whole, had moved away from Rohit and Kohli. But when the board secretary Jay Shah announced that Rohit will lead India at the 2024 T20 World Cup and later announced his and Kohli’s inclusion in the Afghanistan T20Is at home back in January, things couldn’t have been crystal clear. While a lot of people remained apprehensive about this decision, it paid off in the long run. If that’s what it takes for Rohit to become only India’s third World-Cup winning captain, the be it.
Heading into the T20 World Cup, Rohit’s form was a major concern as he was coming off a woeful IPL 2024 for the Mumbai Indians. Having scored a 100 in a defeat against Kolkata Knight Riders, Rohit’s numbers plummeted, and he ended the season playing under Hardik Pandya with 417 runs, 100 of which came in one innings. But the moment he was back in India colours, fortunes changed. He began the tournament with a warm-up type of fifty against Ireland and never looked back.
Rohit endured failures against Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh but switched into his mode against Australia, smacking 92 off 41 balls in the Super Eights. On a belter of a surface, Rohit smashed 8 sixes and seven fours to knock the stuffing out of the Aussies and take the first step towards their exit from the tournament. Against England, where the pitch was two-paced, Rohit scored a gritty 57 off 39 balls with six fours and two sixes and helped India post 171/7, which proved to be a match-winning total in the end.
As was the case with his ODI career, Rohit found his real footing in the T20I format once made to open the innings along with Shikhar Dhawan. 3740 of his runs have come while opening the innings, meaning only 481 runs came via various other positions.