Ageing Rohit ‘going nowhere’ as India veteran shuts retirement talks - WATCH

India Captain Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from the shorter format shortly after leading the team to its second T20 World Cup in the Americas on June 29 in Barbados. A fortnight later, during a promotional event in Dallas, USA, Rohit was asked about his plans, more so around the remaining two formats, with the veteran batter shutting retirement talks immediately, claiming he is going nowhere and that everyone will watch him play for a while.

Rohit, alongside veteran batter Virat Kohli and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, decided to quit T20Is after the T20 World Cup triumph, with Rohit departing as the leading run-scorer in the format (4231 runs from 159 matches), including five hundreds and 32 fifties.

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“This was my last (T20I) game as well. No better time to say goodbye to this format. I’ve loved every moment of this. I started my India career playing this format.

“This is what I wanted, I wanted to win the Cup. I wanted this badly. Very hard to put in words. It was a very emotional moment for me. I was very desperate for this title in my life. Happy that we eventually crossed the line,” Rohit said after the final against South Africa.

Although BCCI is said to rest Rohit for the away Sri Lanka ODIs (starting August 1 in Colombo), with an eye on keeping him fresh for the home season, he quickly responded to the question about his future during the event.

“I just said it. I don’t look that far ahead. So clearly, you will be seeing me play at least for a while,” Rohit said.

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Rohit to lead Team India in CT, WTC Final

With the conclusion of the 20-team tournament in the USA and the Caribbean, Team India’s next two ICC events to look forward to are the Champions Trophy 2025 in Pakistan and the World Test Championship (WTC) Final, scheduled in England.

Though the Champions Trophy’s status remains unclear, given the BCCI has asked ICC to change venue (to Dubai or Sri Lanka) owing to tense relations between arch rivals, the Rohit-led Test side leads the WTC standings, with six wins in nine matches and a PCT of 68.52, strengthening their chances of reaching third WTC Final on the trot.

Meanwhile, BCCI secretary Jay Shah had announced that Rohit will continue leading India in the two slated ICC tournaments next year.

(With inputs from agencies)