Rohit Sharma takes revenge on Shukri Conrad after ‘Grovel’ controversy

Indian opener Rohit Sharma brutally ignored South Africa head coach Shukri Conrad for his controversial "grovel" remark made during the recent Test series after playing a key role in the Men in Blue’s thrilling 17-run victory in the first ODI in Ranchi.

Last month, Shukri Conrad had sparked a huge controversy with his comments during the second and final Test against India in Guwahati.

Shukri Conrad faces embarrassment over “Grovel” controversy

During a press conference after Day 4, Conrad explained that South Africa’s strategy was to make the “Indians spend as much time on their feet out in the field as possible, and we wanted them to really grovel,” as he explained their plan.

SHORTS

View More

Your daily dose of cricket!

Loading...

Read Also: Virat Kohli overtakes Shubman Gill in ICC ODI Rankings, aims to snatch Rohit Sharma’s No.1 spot

On the fifth day, the Proteas side thrashed India by 408 runs to clinch the Test series 2-0 in Guwahati. However, the South African head coach’s choice of words immediately triggered backlash. The term “grovel” has a history in cricket, having been famously used by former England captain Tony Greig in 1976 in a racially sensitive context against the West Indies.

Indian fans, players, and cricket experts were quick to react, calling Conrad’s statement highly inappropriate. Even legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar slammed the Proteas coach for the disrespectful and unnecessary remark that overshadowed his team’s on-field performance.

Rohit Sharma deliberately ignores Shukri Conrad in post-match greetings

A week after the controversy, the Men in Blue took perfect revenge, as they thrashed them in the first ODI by 17 runs, but the pure drama unfolded after the on-field actions in Ranchi. The comeback men Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma returned Conrad the taste of his own medicine.

When the Indian team made their way up the stairs, exchanging greetings with the South African players, Kohli completely ignored Conrad. And now a fresh video is going viral on social media that shows that Rohit also ignored the South African head coach.

Read Also: Virat Kohli sends a statement by ignoring Shukri Conrad in Ranchi after ‘Grovel’ remark

The former Indian captain didn’t even glance at Conrad. As soon as Conrad came in the queue, Rohit ignored the Proteas coach while fixing his eye on the stairs but shook hands with the other players and exchanged greetings with a smile. Rohit showed protest against Conrad with his gesture.

Rohit Sharma also ignored South Africa’s head coach after the first ODI
Belt treatment for him🔥🔥🔥
pic.twitter.com/J52kgp39gQ

— cricket junkie (@cricketmod) December 3, 2025

Rohit Sharma joins the elite 9,000+ runs club at home

Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma achieved another milestone in the second ODI against South Africa in Raipur despite a poor outing with the bat. The 38-year-old opener scored 14 runs off 8 balls, hitting three boundaries at a strike rate of 175 before being dismissed by Nandre Burger.

Despite the low scores, Rohit became the fourth Indian cricketer to score over 9,000 international runs at home, joining legends Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, and Virat Kohli. However, Rohit had hit 57 runs off 51 balls, hitting five fours and three sixes, in the first ODI.

Rohit started his ODI career against Ireland in 2007. In 278 matches and 270 innings, he has scored 11,441 runs at an average of 49.1 and a strike rate of 92.80. He has also hit 33 centuries and 60 half-centuries in ODIs.