Rohit Sharma has opened up on the rumors about his ODI retirement after leading India to their third Champions Trophy title on Sunday, March 9.
Rumours were rife that Rohit would hang up his boots after the tournament final between India and New Zealand at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. However, he has quashed the speculations after leading India to their third title.
Rohit Sharma: Not retiring from ODIs
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Rohit hinted that he's not calling it quits and wants to lead India forward in ODIs: "No future plan, whatever is happening will continue."
"I am not going to retire from this (ODI) format. Just clarifying it so that no rumours are spread in the future," he clarified in the end.
Furthermore, Rohit praised his team for securing back-to-back ICC titles and credited their preparation as the key to their success.
"Well see, winning two ICC trophies is a big achievement for the team and to go undefeated is again icing on the cake. I've seen very few teams, who’ve won two back-to-back tournaments undefeated. For us it was important to prepare well after coming here (Dubai) and play what was in front of us. We used the conditions to our advantage and won the title"
🚨 Rohit Sharma has clarified he is not retiring from ODIs after the Champions Trophy. pic.twitter.com/PI6dJbeKua
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) March 9, 2025
Rohit saves his best for the last
Having struggled to notch up a notable score throughout the competition, Rohit saved his best for the final. He set the tone in India’s chase of 252 by scoring a 76 off 83 balls. After his dismissal, India suffered a minor collapse, slipping to 122-3 in 26.1 overs but Shreyas Iyer (48) and Axar Patel (29) stitched a 61-run stand to arrest the slide. Later KL Rahul (34*), Hardik Pandya (18) and Ravindra Jadeja (9*) took India over the line in with four wickets and an over remaining.
After India’s triumph, Rohit became the second India captain after MS Dhoni to win two ICC trophies, having led India to victory in the T20 World Cup last year.
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