ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Rohit Sharma promises to win tournament and 'bring trophy to Wankhede'
Published - 20 Jan 2025, 12:20 PM
India captain Rohit Sharma has vowed to do his best to power India to glory in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy. The much-awaited marquee event will be played from February 19.
With just a month remaining for the Champions Trophy to begin, Rohit Sharma was asked about the competition when he was speaking at an event celebrating the 50 years of Mumbai's iconic Wankhede Stadium.
Last year, Rohit Sharma ended Team India's long wait for an ICC trophy by leading the team to triumph in the T20 World Cup. The right-handed batsman had led the team from the very front, finishing the competition as the second-highest run-scorer behind Afghanistan's Rahmanullah Gurbaz.
Earlier in 2023, the Mumbai legend had also guided the Indian team to the final of the ODI World Cup, becoming only the fourth Indian captain to achieve the milestone. While he failed to lead the team to victory in the 50-over World Cup, he is now eyeing glory in the tournament which is also called the mini World Cup.
"We will try our best . It is always a dream to represent the Indian team in any ICC trophy. We will embark on another dream. I am sure that when we will reach Dubai, 140 crore people will be behind us. We will try to do everything we can to bring the trophy back again at Wankhede," said Rohit Sharma.
Rohit Sharma on playing at the Wankhede Stadium:
Rohit Sharma also opened up on the fond memories of playing at the Wankhede, his home ground. He recalled how he used to watch the Mumbai Ranji team at the famous venue when he was a 14-year old budding cricketer. The India captain had a word of praise for the fans as well, saying that the crowd at the Wankhede Stadium 'does not disappoint'.
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"The crowd does not disappoint here, no matter which team you play, India, Mumbai or Mumbai Indians . When we won the 2007 T20 World Cup and celebrated it here, that day I dreamt of bringing the World Cup trophy to Wankhede. Luckily we celebrated the 2024 T20 WC victory in Mumbai and Wankhede.
"The atmosphere here is different. Even the players who are not from Mumbai really love coming here and playing. The stands were full when we celebrated and they are full even now. This is the specialty of Wankhede," said Rohit Sharma.
Meanwhile, Team India are in Group A for the upcoming Champions Trophy. The other teams in the group are defending champions Pakistan, Bangladesh, and New Zealand. Team India will be playing all of their games in the UAE.
The Men in Blue will start their campaign against Bangladesh on February 20. Their last league match will be against New Zealand on March 2. The top two teams from each group will advance to the semifinal.
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