As the India cricket team is on the verge of winning the ICC Champions Trophy, former wicketkeeper batter Deep Dasgupta has heaped praise on captain Rohit Sharma. Currently in a great position in the India vs. New Zealand Final, the Men in Blue are expected to pull through against the Black Caps in Dubai.
However, it won’t be a regular victory. What Team India has been doing is exceptional. In the last three ICC events, Rohit Sharma has lost just 1 match. That loss to Australia in the ODI World Cup 2023 was the defeat. Otherwise, Team India won 10 consecutive matches in the 2023 event, 8 in the T20 World Cup 2024, and 4 so far in the Champions Trophy 2025.
Rohit Sharma and his impact on Indian white-ball cricket
A big reason behind this run has been Rohit Sharma himself. He has changed the way he plays, especially in ODIs. His average remains somewhat similar in the last three years, but his strike rate has gone through the roof. His intent has made other batters play freely as well, and the result is for everyone to see.
“He has brought a change in the mindset of how kids in India, the next generation, will play white-ball cricket and how we, as viewers, kind of consume ODI cricket or 20-over cricket and the effect of impact. We’ve stopped talking about sheer numbers nowadays. If you look at it, we talk about impact now and how impactful an innings was, and that’s what I think Rohit has done as a leader, as a batter, showing the way to the rest of the guys, and he’s been absolutely phenomenal,” Dasgupta said on Star Sports.
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Rohit Sharma has sacrificed his personal milestone for the success of the team. He has shown the up-and-coming players that records are irrelevant. The motive isn’t to hold records for most runs or hundreds but to win as many ICC trophies as possible.
“For somebody who is known to score those daddy hundreds and double hundreds, to change his game. In 2019 and 2020, I still remember India’s top three getting something like 65 or 67 percent of the runs, and we would be dependent on them to score those big runs,” Dasgupta added.
Rohit Sharma stats in ODIs
| Innings | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | 100s | 50s | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007-2021 | 220 | 9205 | 49 | 88.9 | 29 | 43 |
| 2022-Now | 45 | 1887 | 47.17 | 118.15 | 3 | 14 |
