Rohit Sharma's End Game narrated by fellow Mumbai cricketer

Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar made a huge statement on Mumbai Indians (MI) batter Rohit Sharma amid his poor form in IPL 2025. Manjrekar said that the veteran batter is no longer the player he was a few years ago, adding that he needs to push himself daily at this stage in his career.

The MI batter has struggled in the early stages of IPL 2025. He began his campaign with a duck against Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Rohit scored just eight runs in Mumbai's recent game against Gujarat Titans on Saturday. The batter has crossed the 400-run mark in only two of the last eight IPL seasons.

Rohit Sharma Has to Push Himself Every Morning - Sanjay Manjrekar

Sanjay Manjrekar opened up about Rohit Sharma’s current struggles. Manjrekar emphasized that Rohit must work harder each day to stay at his best, as things are gradually slipping away. He also added that the Mumbai Indians star continues to depend on his natural ability and instincts.

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"Rohit Sharma is clearly going through a phase. He's not the Rohit Sharma of, say, three to four years ago. He's at a stage in his career where he has to push himself every morning — train hard and be at his best — because things are slipping away for him, he's still relying on his natural talent and instincts," Manjrekar said on JioStar.

Rohit Sharma scored over 400 runs in the 2024 season, and it was the first time since 2019. He scored 417 runs in 14 matches at an average of 32.08 and a strike rate of 150, including one century and one fifty.

Ryan Rickelton Will Take Time to Adjust to Indian Pitches - Sanjay Manjrekar

While analyzing Mumbai Indians' batting struggles in their first two matches, Sanjay Manjrekar pointed out that Ryan Rickelton will need time to adapt to Indian conditions. He cited a few players from his country—like AB de Villiers and Heinrich Klaasen.

"Ryan Rickelton, being a South African, will take time to adjust to Indian pitches. Very few South African batters, barring AB de Villiers and Heinrich Klaasen, have truly flourished on Indian pitches. So, we'll have to give him time," Manjrekar said.

It Still Looks a Little Unconvincing - Sanjay Manjrekar

Manjrekar also said that MI's batting unit performs better on pitches where the ball comes onto the bat. He further added that if MI had been chasing at Wankhede Stadium, they might have gotten much closer to their target.

"Apart from that, Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav, along with Robin Minz and some of the other players, form the batting line-up. However, to me, it still looks a little unconvincing. And a lot of them rely on pitches where the ball comes onto the bat nicely."

"There's pace and bounce, and even in that chase where they needed 12 or 13 runs, if it had been at Wankhede Stadium, they would have likely come very close to the target."

Mumbai Indians will next take on Kolkata Knight Riders at Wankhede Stadium on Monday, March 31. MI are in ninth place in the points table and will look to bounce back against the defending champions.

Also read: Sanjay Manjrekar goes to war with Ravi Shastri on LIVE TV!! Another BCCI ban incoming?