Rohit Sharma to retire after ICC Champions Trophy final: report

India great Rohit Sharma aka ‘the Hitman’ is reportedly set to retire after the ICC Champions Trophy final on Sunday in Dubai.

The prolific captain’s future remained uncertain after India loss the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.

Sharma, who will turn 38 in a couple of months, has already retired from T20Is after leading India to second T20 World Cup triumph in 2024.

Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja also followed Sharma’s footsteps and called time to their T20I careers.

With next major ODI event, the ICC ODI World Cup, is scheduled for 2027, it is highly unlikely that Rohit would feature in that.

However, Rohit’s impact as an opener with the explosive start that he is capable of providing makes him hard to ignore.

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 future. In both cases, the decision will entirely be of Rohit.

It is also reported that, If India win the eight-team tournament, Rohit might give up his captaincy and continue to play as a player.

The captaincy will then pass on to a younger player – either Hardik Pandya or Shubman Gill, according to the report.

His highest score in the ongoing Champions Trophy is 41 against Bangladesh in the opening game.

It is worth mentioning here that, Rohit Sharma has played 272 ODIs for India and scored 11092 runs at an impressive average of 48.64. He also holds the record of highest individual ODI score of 264.

In his impressive career, the Hitman has scored three double tons, 34 centuries and 57 half centuries.