South African cricket great AB de Villiers heaped compliments on Rohit Sharma's phenomenal success as a batsman and captain following the Indian skipper guiding his team to victory in the ICC Champions Trophy, silencing rumors regarding his possible ODI retirement.
India won their third Champions Trophy trophy with a nerve-wracking four-wicket victory over New Zealand in the final. This latest success established Rohit as the second most successful Indian captain in ICC trophy terms.
With Rohit at the helm, India won their second ICC title within a span of less than nine months, having previously won the 2024 T20 World Cup by beating South Africa in the final at Bridgetown. The win also ended India's long ICC trophy drought, which had started with their 2013 Champions Trophy victory under MS Dhoni.
Emphasizing Rohit's success as a captain, de Villiers highlighted the staggering statistics that support his leadership credentials. "Along with other captains, compare Rohit's win percentage to the others, it's nearly 74%, which is far better than any previous captain. If he continues to go at this rate, he will be one of the great ODI captains of all time. Rohit has also claimed that he's not retiring and asked rumors to be put to rest," de Villiers said on his YouTube channel.
Speculation over Rohit's ODI retirement had been going around, especially after he took a break from T20Is after India's World Cup win in Barbados last year. But Rohit, who had a vital 76-run knock in the final and was declared Player of the Match, shot down such speculations after the Champions Trophy win.
"Why would he retire? With that sort of record, not just as captain but as a batter.". That 76 in the final, which provided India with a great start, set the stage for success, and led from the front when the pressure was highest. Rohit Sharma has no reason to retire. No reason to take any criticism at all. His record speaks for himself. Not only that, but he has also sort of changed his game," de Villiers stated.
The veteran Proteas player also pointed out the way Rohit has developed as an opener, especially during the powerplay. "If we look at his powerplay strike rate, it was really low for an opening batsman during the powerplay, but post-2022 his strike rate has increased to 115 in the initial powerplay and that's the distinction between great and good. It's revolutionizing your own game and it doesn't end. You always have something to learn and something to improve," he added.
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