Bridgetown: Indian captain Rohit Sharma has announced his retirement from T20 cricket following India’s victorious T20 World Cup final against South Africa. Rohit confirmed his decision during the post-match press conference, expressing deep emotional sentiments.
“This is my last game as well, and there’s no better time to bid farewell to this format. I have cherished every moment of playing T20 cricket for India. It’s where I began my career, and winning the World Cup was always my dream,” Rohit stated.
Reflecting on the intense emotions surrounding India’s first ICC tournament victory in 11 years, Rohit admitted, “I am overwhelmed and find it hard to express what I am feeling right now. Words fail to describe it. I need some time to let this sink in. Last night, I couldn’t sleep because I was so eager and desperate to win. But I managed to stay composed on the field.”
Rohit Sharma’s retirement marks the end of an illustrious T20 career, culminating with a memorable World Cup triumph.
The 37-year-old Rohit Sharma has now joined an exclusive club, becoming only the third Indian captain to win a World Cup across formats, following in the footsteps of Kapil Dev (1983) and MS Dhoni (2007 and 2011).
Under Rohit’s leadership, India also achieved another milestone as he became the first-ever captain to lead a team in 50 T20I matches. This landmark victory came in the World Cup final against South Africa. Rohit took charge of India’s T20I captaincy after the team’s disappointing performance in the 2021 T20 World Cup.
In his first stint as captain in the T20 World Cup, Rohit had guided India to the semifinals in Australia two years prior, ending in a comprehensive defeat against England. Under his captaincy, India has now made history by becoming the first team to win the T20 World Cup without losing a single match, putting an end to the ICC trophy drought spanning over 11 years.
Rohit Sharma’s decision to retire from T20 cricket follows former India skipper Virat Kohli’s announcement that this would be his last T20 World Cup. Kohli, who was instrumental in India’s victory and named player of the match in the final, expressed his gratitude in the post-match press conference, stating, “This was my last T20 World Cup. Achieving this was our ultimate goal. There are days when you feel you can’t score, and then this happens. It’s an incredible feeling, a ‘now or never’ kind of situation. God is great.”
These developments mark a significant moment for Indian cricket, with both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli leaving their indelible marks on the T20 format.
