Rohit Sharma made a rare and heartwarming appearance at the Bandra-Kurla Complex during the lunch break of the Ranji Trophy match between Mumbai and Himachal Pradesh. The former India captain, casually dressed in a blue shirt, shorts and a black cap, spent time catching up with ex-teammates and even slipped in a few light sprints outside the nets under the sharp afternoon sun.

What instantly stood out was how lean he looked, a result of his extensive months-long fitness regime with former India assistant coach Abhishek Nayar. Rohit Sharma last turned out for Mumbai during the previous Ranji Trophy season. After the BCCI instructed senior players to participate in domestic cricket when free from international duty, he featured in the match against Jammu and Kashmir in January.

Scores of 3 and 28 couldn’t prevent a heavy defeat, and with his retirement from Test cricket now official, the chances of seeing Rohit in red-ball domestic action again are slim. His priorities are firmly aligned with the 2027 ODI World Cup.

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Fresh off a Player-of-the-Series performance in Australia, where he smashed a match-winning century in the final ODI, Rohit is gearing up for India’s upcoming three-match ODI series against South Africa starting November 30.

Hitman Rohit Sharma during today’s training in Mumbai. 👐 pic.twitter.com/GsTvMDTwuO

— Rohit Sharma Fan (@hitmanfanfollow) November 8, 2025

Chief selector Ajit Agarkar has already thrown down the challenge by removing him from ODI captaincy. With Rohit set to be 40 when the 2027 World Cup kicks off in South Africa, his place in the squad isn’t guaranteed. His pedigree in the format gives him some cushion, but performance will ultimately be the deciding factor.

Interestingly, both Rohit and Virat Kohli, who find themselves in similar phases of their careers, were not picked for the India A squad for the List-A series against South Africa A. With neither playing any other format, the absence of competitive match time could have been an opportunity missed for both veterans.

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India A squad for one-day series against South Africa A: Tilak Varma (C), Ruturaj Gaikwad (VC), Abhishek Sharma, Riyan Parag, Ishan Kishan (WK), Ayush Badoni, Nishant Sindhu, Vipraj Nigam, Manav Suthar, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Khaleel Ahmed, Prabhsimran Singh (WK)