Rohit Sharma‘s future was a matter of intense debate after India’s loss in the Border Gavaskar Trophy against Australia. Rohit is two months shy of 38 and has already retired from the T20I format. After the T20 World Cup 2024 win, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja decided to focus on only two formats. India’s next Test series is in June when they tour England, while India’s next major ODI tournament is the 2027 ODI World Cup. Now, with so much time between the Champions Trophy 2025 and the next World Cup, there is a school of thought that It is time for the transition to take place.
However, Rohit’s impact as an opener with the explosive start that he is capable of providing makes him hard to ignore. In the midst of this, a report in Dainik Jagran has quoted a BCCI source as saying, Rohit might retire if India lose to New Zealand in the Champions Trophy final in Dubai on Sunday. The report also claimed that if India win, there is not clarity on Rohit’s decision. In both cases, the decision will entirely be of Rohit – who won the the 2024 T20 World Cup as captain.
The report further said, if India win the Champions Trophy 2025 final, there is a high possibility that Rohit might continue only as a player in ODIs. The captaincy will then pass on to a younger player – either Hardik Pandya or Shubman Gill, according to the report – while Rohit will continue to play, provided he is selected, for as long as he likes.
Legendary Sunil Gavaskar believes Rohit Sharma should not be content with scoring just 25-30 runs and must focus on building longer innings, as his presence at the crease can have a game-changing impact for India. In ODI cricket, the Indian skipper has embraced an aggressive approach to give India quick starts, but this has often resulted in early dismissals.
His highest score in the ongoing Champions Trophy is 41 against Bangladesh in the opening game.
“(If) He (Rohit Sharma) bats for even 25 overs, India will be around 180-200. Imagine if they have lost only a couple of wickets by then; just think what they could do. They could reach 350 or more,” Gavaskar told India Today.
“He also needs to give it some thought. It’s one thing to go out and play aggressively, but there has to be a bit of discretion somewhere to give himself the chance to bat for 25-30 overs. If he does that, he takes the game away from the opposition. That kind of impact is match winning.” Rohit has managed scores of 20, 15, and 28 against Pakistan, New Zealand, and Australia respectively in the tournament.
“And I think, as a batter, are you happy with scoring 25-30 runs? You shouldn’t be! So that is what I would say to him: your impact on the team will be even greater if you bat for 25 overs instead of just seven, eight, or nine overs,” Gavaskar said.
With PTI inputs
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