The wait of a over decade finally came to an end as the Indian cricket team defeated South Africa by seven runs in the final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 to get their hands on the glorious trophy.
With the victory came a sad moment for the cricket fans as along with the coach Rahul Dravid, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli also announced their retirement from the shortest format of the game.
It was the T20I format that gave recognition to Rohit Sharma as he first came into the scene during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2007 where India defeated Pakistan in the final to lift their second ICC trophy. The 37-year-old is hanging his boots in the T20 Internationals as one of the best players to ever play the game.
He is currently the top run-scorer in the shortest format of the game with a whopping 4231 runs to his name in 159 matches at an average of 31.34 and a strike rate of 140.89. Sharma also smacked a total of 32 fifties and five hundreds. In this article, let’s walk through the five best innings of Rohit Sharma’s international T20 career.
#5 50* vs South Africa, 2007 T20 World Cup
It was the inaugural edition of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2007 that put Rohit Sharma on the cricketing map and helped him become a renowned face. One of the best knocks that the Mumbai-born produced during the tournament came against South Africa as the Indian cricket team scored a victory by 37 runs.
Batting first, the Men in Blue put up a score of 153 runs in the allotted 20 overs courtesy of Rohit Sharma who held his composure despite the regular falling of wickets on the other end. The now 37-year-old, batting at number five, hit not-out 50 runs off 40 balls including seven boundaries and two maximums.
He was assisted by the skipper MS Dhoni who contributed with a knock of 45 runs off 33 balls. For his valiant efforts with the bat, Sharma took home the Player of the Match trophy.
#4 100* vs England, T20I series 2018
Rohit Sharma is the top run-scorer in the T20 Internationals
A few years back, Rohit Sharma was criticized as someone who could score runs only at the home pitches. However, the three-match T20I series against England in 2018 came as a perfect opportunity for the opening batter to silence all the haters. As the Indian team scored a win by 2-1, Sharma won the Player of the Series award with his best performance coming during the final match.
Playing at the County Ground in Bristol, the Indian team was under pressure with the series at 1-1. Batting first in the game, the hosts racked up a score of 198 runs. However, the visitors had nothing to worry about as Rohit Sharma smacked a century in just 56 balls with the help of 11 boundaries and five maximums at a strike rate of over 178.
The efforts by Rohit and support from skipper Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya who hit 43 and 33 runs respectively, helped India chase the score within 18.4 overs and score a win by seven wickets.
#3 121* vs Afghanistan, T20I series 2024
It was a comeback series for Rohit Sharma in the T20 Internationals after over a year as India locked horns with Afghanistan in January this year for a three-match T20I series. The skipper made sure to grab the opportunity with both hands as he caused carnage on the field in the final game.
Winning the two first games, India was without any pressure in the final T20 International. They put up a dominating performance with the bat by racking up a score of 212 runs in the allotted 20 overs. The skipper recorded his highest total in the shortest format of the game as he hammered not out 121 runs off just 69 balls. His knock included as many as 11 fours and eight sixes.
The game didn’t go as per the plan for the Indian team in the second innings as Afghanistan also scored 212 runs. However, the Men in Blue managed to win the 2nd Super Over to win the three-match series by 3-0.
#2 79* vs Australia, T20 World Cup 2010
Rohit Sharma has always performed in the T20 World Cups and the 2010 edition of the ICC tournament was no different. One of the Mumbai-born’s iconic performances in the T20 Internationals came during a league game against Australia at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown.
Chasing a score of 185 runs in the allotted 20 overs, India looked in hot waters as the top order including the likes of Murali Vijay, Gautam Gambhir, and Suresh Raina failed to make an impact. In the testing times, Sharma, who came to bat at number 4, emerged as the knight in shining armor for the side. The now 37-year-old looked in complete control of the game as he ended up smacking unbeaten 79 runs.
Rohit took only 46 balls and hit four boundaries and six maximums. However, his efforts didn’t prove fruitful as no other Indian batter could score even 15 runs and thus the Men in Blue ended up on the losing side by 49 runs.
#1 92 vs Australia, T20 World Cup 2024
Rohit Sharma won the Player of the Match award against Australia
Rohit Sharma pulled down the curtains on his glorious international career in the shortest format of the game on a memorable note as he finished as the top run-scorer for India and second in the overall list during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024. The skipper led from the front with a total of 257 runs to his name in eight innings at an average of 36.71.
Meanwhile, it was his knock during the Super 8 game against Australia that impressed the cricket fraternity the most. The Mumbai stalwart showcased his clean-hitting skills as he hammered 92 runs off just 41 balls with the help of seven boundaries and eight maximums at a strike rate of 224.39 to help India post a mammoth score of 205 runs on the board in the 20 overs.
Sharma was heading towards a well-deserved century during the match but his inning came to an end in the 12th over owing to a brilliant ball by Mitchell Starc. The opening batter’s efforts did not go in vain as India scored a victory by 24 runs and booked a seat in the semi-final of the T20 World Cup.