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In a shocking development, the Indian selectors and team management have forced Rohit Sharma to retire from international cricket after ordinary performances in the recent couple of ODI series.
Earlier, there were reports that the India national cricket team head coach Gautam Gambhir doesn’t want Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the ODI team going forward, and now it has emerged that the ongoing England tour would be Hitman’s final assignment as the Indian cricketer. Earlier, Abhishek Nayar reveals how Rohit Sharma responds to failures.
Rohit Sharma told to retire after England tour
According to The Indian Express, India’s third and final ODI against England at Lord's on July 19 will be Rohit Sharma's last match of his international career. The report claimed that the BCCI's selection committee has decided to move on from Rohit after the ongoing ODI series in England.
It is also claimed that the national selectors, along with Gautam Gambhir, spoke to Rohit last week and shared their plans for the future. The selection committee now wants to build a young ODI team for the 2027 World Cup.
Yashasvi Jaiswal is expected to take the Hitman's spot on the team, as the selectors do not see Rohit as part of India's long-term ODI plans for the ICC World Cup 2026. Amid this, Virat Kohli becomes third Indian with 100 SENA ODIs, joins Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni.
A BCCI source was quoted as saying by The Indian Express: “Selectors have informed Rohit he is not in their scheme of things post the England tour, and they are moving on from him after this series. Though he wanted to continue, especially after working on his fitness. The selectors have left the ball in Sharma’s court to decide his future.”
Rohit Sharma disappointed with selectors' long-term vision
The same report revealed that Rohit recently spoke to a few senior BCCI officials during the ongoing England tour. It is believed that the Indian opener was disappointed after learning about the selectors' long-term plans, as they have decided to build a younger team for the future.
Rohit has already retired from T20Is after leading India to the 2024 T20 World Cup title and later announced his retirement from Test cricket before India's tour of England in 2025. Since then, the selectors and team management have reportedly focused on preparing young players for the future.
Rohit's golden captaincy can't hide batting struggles anymore
The report further shared that talented youngsters like Yashasvi Jaiswal had to wait for opportunities despite scoring runs because the management was planning a gradual transition. Last year, the selectors had already made a major change by handing India's ODI captaincy to Shubman Gill.
Yet, Rohit's record as India's ODI captain remains impressive. He guided India to the 2023 ODI World Cup final and introduced an aggressive batting style at the top of the order that changed the team's approach.
Under his leadership, India also went on to lift the 2024 T20 World Cup and then the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, making him one of the most successful white-ball captains.
However, Rohit's recent form with the bat has become a concern. During the ongoing ODI series against England, he scored only 11 runs in the first match and followed it with 26 runs off 47 balls in the second ODI at Cardiff. He struggled to find his rhythm and was not looking at his best.
