'Most people don't even have a 13-year career': Rohit Sharma opens up

NEW DELHI: The feeling of lifting the T20 World Cup in 2024 still seems to have not fully sunk in for Rohit Sharma. On June 29 last year, in Barbados, India ended an 11-year-long ICC trophy drought by defeating South Africa by seven runs to win the ICC T20 World Cup title for the second time. It was Rohit Sharma's second ICC T20 World Cup triumph and his first ICC title as captain, coming after the heartbreak of losing the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup final to Australia at home despite a ten-match winning streak.Exactly a year after that iconic victory, India’s T20 World Cup-winning captain Rohit Sharma took everyone down memory lane, recalling the memorable day.

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“Thirteen years is a long time. Most people don’t even have a 13-year career. So, to wait that long to win a World Cup… the last one I won was in 2007," he said, speaking exclusively on JioHotstar’s special show Champions Waali Feeling Phir Se."For me, it couldn't have gotten any bigger than this.

I didn’t sleep the whole night. I was only thinking about the World Cup. I was nervous. I couldn’t feel my legs. Did I feel nerves? Of course. I just don’t show it—but inside, it was a lot," Rohit said.

"We were supposed to leave around 8:30 or 9 in the morning. But I woke up at 7. From my room, I could see the ground and just kept watching it. I remember thinking—‘In two hours, I’ll be there. And in four hours, the result will be out.

Either the Cup will be here or it won’t.’” he added.

The tournament also marked a significant moment for Indian cricket, as it was the farewell of two legends — Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli — from the T20 format. Both walked away from the shortest format with their heads held high.Rohit was a standout performer with the bat for India during the tournament, amassing 257 runs in eight innings, including three half-centuries. He averaged 36.71 and had a strike rate of over 155, finishing as the second-highest run-scorer in the tournament.