The Indian team, under Rohit Sharma’s leadership, lifted the 2024 T20 World Cup trophy after defeating South Africa by seven runs in the final in Barbados on Saturday, June 29. However, Rohit announced his retirement from T20I cricket after the title win.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra said, “He has five IPL trophies. He won a Champions League and has bid goodbye to T20I cricket with a T20 World Cup win. He has left a captaincy legacy. It will be remembered because only three Indians have lifted the World Cup trophy – Kapil Dev, MS Dhoni with two trophies, and one for Rohit Sharma. It will be remembered for centuries that Rohit Sharma was the captain who won the 2024 T20 World Cup. Why is his captaincy so good? It’s because he creates an atmosphere like that. Whoever you speak to says Rohit bhaiya is a very good captain. I have not come across a single person who says Rohit is not a good guy. I cannot say that for everyone but can say that for Rohit. Everybody who I have spoken to praises him. He is 24-carat pure gold.”
India won 50 of 62 T20Is, including a Super Over win against Afghanistan as well, under Rohit’s captaincy. It’s the most wins for any captain in T20Is, with the Indian team also becoming the first team to win a T20 World Cup unbeaten. Aakash Chopra also said that Rohit’s game was ideally suited to the format.
“When he started playing, it seemed like he was made for this format only because stroke-making is second nature for him. He is not a player you had to mold slightly. He came after playing a lot of cricket on cemented pitches in Borivali lanes. He is a street-smart fighter who knew he had to hit sixes. No one hits sixes better than him, I will be very honest. He hits effortless sixes. He hits while staying in his position and jumping down the track. He hits fast bowlers and spinners. You are not going to forget for a long time the sixes he hit over cover against Mitchell Starc and that too in a World Cup match. He is a different-level player,” Aakash Chopra elaborated.
“Whether he bats first or second, the day he scores runs, the matches are generally one-sided. Whenever Rohit scores, he takes the team’s score way beyond par. So, ultimately, it becomes a one-sided match. He does get out early as well, so you see a little inconsistency, but the day Rohit plays, no player comes close to him,” he concluded.
