Rohit Sharma
Rohit Gurunath Sharma (born 30 April 1987) is an Indian international cricketer and the captain of the India national team in ODIs.
He is also a former captain in Tests and T20Is.
He is widely regarded as one of the greatest opening batters of all time, and one of the best batsmen of his generation. He is a right-handed batsman who plays for Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League and for Mumbai in domestic cricket. After the team’s victory at the 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup, he announced his retirement from T20Is. He was also a member of the teams that won the 2007 T20 World Cup, the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy, and was the winning captain of the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy, where he was also the player of the match in the final.
Rohit Sharma holds several batting records which include most runs in T20 Internationals, most sixes in international cricket, most double centuries in ODI cricket (3), most centuries at Cricket World Cups (7), and joint most hundreds in Twenty20 Internationals (5).
He also holds the world record for the highest individual score (264) in a One Day International (ODI) and holds the record for scoring most hundreds (five) in a single Cricket World Cup, for which he won the ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year award in 2019.
He is the first and only captain to lead a team in all ICC tournament finals.
Early life
Rohit Sharma was born on 30 April 1987 into a Telugu-speaking family in Bansod, Nagpur, Maharashtra, India. His mother, Purnima Sharma, is from Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. His father, Gurunath Sharma, worked as a caretaker of a transport firm storehouse.
Sharma was raised by his grandparents and uncles in Borivali because of his father’s low income. He would visit his parents, who lived in a single-room house in Dombivli, only during weekends.
Rohit Sharma joined a cricket camp in 1999 with his uncle’s money. Dinesh Lad, his coach at the camp, asked him to change his school to Swami Vivekanand International School, where Lad was the coach and the cricket facilities were better than those at Sharma’s old school. Sharma recollects, “I told him I couldn’t afford it, but he got me a scholarship. So for four years I didn’t pay a penny, and did well in my cricket.”
Sharma started as an off-spinner who could bat a bit before Lad noticed his batting ability and promoted him from number eight to open the innings. He excelled in the Harris and Giles Shield school cricket tournaments, scoring a century on debut as an opener.
Personal life
Rohit Sharma married his longtime girlfriend, Ritika Sajdeh, on 13 December 2015, whom he first met in 2008. They welcomed their first child, a daughter, on 30 December 2018. Rohit and Ritika welcomed their second child, a son, on 15 November 2024.
Commercial endorsements
Rohit Sharma has been sponsored by several brands including CEAT and the Swiss watchmaker Hublot. In his career, he has also endorsed brands such as Maggi, Glow & Lovely, Lay’s, Nissan, energy drink Relentless, Nasivion nasal spray, Aristocrat by VIP Industries, Adidas, and Oppo mobiles.
Youth career
Rohit Sharma made his List A debut for West Zone against Central Zone in the Deodhar Trophy at Gwalior in March 2005. Batting at number eight, he scored 31 not out as West Zone won by 3 wickets with 24 balls remaining. It was Sharma’s unbeaten innings of 142 in 123 balls against North Zone at the Maharanna Bhupal College Ground in Udaipur in the same tournament that brought him into the limelight. He visited Abu Dhabi and Australia with the India A squad and was then included among India’s 30-member probable list for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy tournament, although he did not make the final squad.
International career
| Opponent | Test | ODI | T20I | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Afghanistan | – | 1 | 1 | 2 |
 Australia | 1 | 8 | – | 9 |
 Bangladesh | – | 3 | – | 3 |
 England | 4 | 3 | 1 | 8 |
 New Zealand | – | 2 | – | 2 |
 Pakistan | – | 2 | – | 2 |
 South Africa | 3 | 3 | 1 | 7 |
 Sri Lanka | 1 | 6 | 1 | 8 |
 West Indies | 3 | 3 | 1 | 7 |
 Zimbabwe | – | 1 | – | 1 |
| Total | 12 | 32 | 5 | 49 |
Test matches
In November 2013, during Sachin Tendulkar’s farewell series, Rohit Sharma made his Test debut at Eden Gardens in Kolkata against West Indies and scored 177, the second-highest individual score on debut by an Indian after Shikhar Dhawan (187). He followed it up with 111 not out in the second Test at his home ground, the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Having been out of the Test team since 2017–18, Sharma went on the 2018–19 tour of Australia after earning a recall. Chief selector M. S. K. Prasad said the reason for his recall was that his natural game suited the bouncy Australian pitches. Rohit Sharma played in the first Test in Adelaide, scoring 37 and 1 in an Indian victory. During the first Test, he sustained a minor injury which saw him miss the second Test in Perth. He recovered for the Boxing Day third Test at Melbourne and scored 63 not out to help India total 443/7 and win both the Test and the series. After the third Test, Sharma returned to India for the birth of his daughter.
2015, 2019 and 2023 Cricket World Cups
In March 2015, Rohit Sharma made his first appearance in the Cricket World Cup and played in eight matches for India in the 2015 tournament in Australia. India reached the semi-final stage where they were defeated by Australia. Sharma scored 330 runs in the tournament with one century, a score of 137 in the quarter-final against Bangladesh. On 15 April 2019, Sharma was appointed vice-captain of India’s squad for the 2019 World Cup in England. In the opening match against South Africa, he scored 122, including his 12,000th run in international cricket.
He followed it up with centuries against Pakistan, England, and Bangladesh. In the match against Sri Lanka, hitting yet another century, he became the first batsman to score five centuries in a single World Cup tournament and equalled Tendulkar’s record for the most centuries (6) in all World Cup matches. Sharma totalled 648 runs in the tournament to finish as the leading run-scorer and win the ICC’s Golden Bat award, becoming the third Indian player to do so.
On 8 October 2023, during the ICC Cricket World Cup, Rohit Sharma was entrusted with the captaincy responsibilities for the Indian team in a match against Australia. This significant moment marked the first time he captained the Indian side in the Cricket World Cup. What set this particular event apart was that at that time, he had become the oldest player to lead the Indian team in the tournament, showcasing his maturity and experience as a cricketer.
On 11 October 2023, during a match against Afghanistan in the Cricket World Cup 2023, Rohit Sharma achieved a milestone by surpassing Sachin Tendulkar’s record for the most centuries in World Cup history. With a display of batting prowess, Rohit Sharma notched his seventh century, breaking the record in this World Cup encounter.
Other one-day international matches
Rohit Sharma made his full international debut in a one-day match against Ireland in Belfast on 23 June 2007. This was part of the 2007 Future Cup competition which also involved South Africa. He was number seven in the batting order but did not bat as India won the game by 9 wickets. He scored his maiden ODI half-century (52) against Pakistan at Jaipur on 18 November 2007 and was selected for the Indian squad going to the 2007–08 Commonwealth Bank Series in Australia. In that series, he scored 235 runs at an average of 33.57 with 2 fifties, including 66 in the first final at Sydney when he partnered Sachin Tendulkar for most of India’s successful run chase.
After that, however, his ODI performances suffered a downturn and he lost his middle-order position to Suresh Raina. Later, Virat Kohli took his position as the reserve batsman. In December 2009, following his triple century in the Ranji Trophy, he was recalled to the ODI team for the tri-nations tournament in Bangladesh as Tendulkar opted to rest in the series.
He scored his maiden ODI century (114) against Zimbabwe on 28 May 2010 and followed it up with another century in the next match of the tri-series against Sri Lanka on 30 May 2010 by scoring 101 not out. He had a run of poor form in South Africa just before the 2011 World Cup and as a consequence he was left out of India’s squad for the tournament.
Rohit Sharma was recalled to the limited-overs squad for the tour of the West Indies in June and July 2011. In the first match at Queen’s Park Oval, he scored 68 not out from 75 balls with three fours and a six. In the third match at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua, he scored a match-winning 86 off 91 balls after India had been reduced to 92 for 6.
Twenty20 international matches
Rohit Sharma was included in the Indian squad for the 2007 ICC World Twenty20 and made his mark by scoring an unbeaten 50 from 40 deliveries against South Africa in a must-win Super Eight match. This enabled India to win the match by 37 runs, and they went on to defeat Pakistan in the final, when Rohit Sharma scored 30 not out from 16 deliveries. On 2 October 2015, during the South African tour of India, Sharma scored 106 in the first Twenty20 international at HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala, becoming the second Indian cricketer to have scored centuries in all three formats of international cricket.
In December 2017, in a series against Sri Lanka, Rohit Sharma scored the joint-fastest T20I century, in 35 balls, ending with 118 from 43 deliveries, equaling the record of David Miller. This was also his second century in Twenty20 internationals.
On 8 July 2018, during a series in England, Sharma became the second Indian batsman, after Virat Kohli, to score 2,000 runs in a Twenty20 international career. He was the fifth batsman worldwide to achieve the feat. He also scored his third T20I century during this series, equaling the then-record for most T20I centuries.
In March 2018, he led Team India to win the Nidahas Trophy under his captaincy. In November 2018, in a series against West Indies, he scored his fourth T20I century, creating a new record for the most centuries by a player in T20I cricket.
In November 2019, in the opening match of the series against Bangladesh, Sharma became the most-capped cricketer for India in T20Is, playing in his 99th match. In the next match of the series, he became the first male cricketer for India to play in 100 T20Is.
In November 2020, Rohit Sharma was nominated for the ICC Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Decade award.
In July 2022, Sharma became the first captain in T20I history to lead their team to 14 consecutive victories.
With his participation in the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia, Sharma became the only Indian cricketer to have played in every edition of the tournament since its inception in 2007.
On 27 October 2022, Rohit Sharma broke the record for most sixes by an Indian batsman in T20 World Cups, previously held by Yuvraj Singh, hitting his 34th six against Netherlands at Sydney Cricket Ground.[102][103]
In May 2024, he was named as a captain in India’s squad for the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup tournament.In June 2024, during a match against Ireland, he achieved the milestone of hitting 600 sixes in international cricket across all formats. On 29 June 2024, Sharma led India to win the 2024 T20 World Cup after defeating South Africa in the final.In the post-match press conference after the T20 World Cup victory, Sharma declared his retirement from T20Is, while confirming that he would continue to represent India in ODIs and Test match formats.
Franchise career
Rohit Sharma joined the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008 when he was signed by the Deccan Chargers franchise, based in Hyderabad, for US$750,000 a year. In 2009, he won the IPL for the first time as the vice-captain of the team. In the 2011 auction, he was sold for US$2 million to the Mumbai Indians. He scored his maiden IPL century in the 2012 season with 109* off 60 balls against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
In the 2015 season, he missed his century by just two runs, scoring 98* off 65 balls in the first match against Kolkata Knight Riders, but it came in a losing cause. Again in the 2018 season, he missed his century, scoring 94 off 52 balls against Royal Challengers Bangalore in a 46-run win. He then scored his second IPL century in the 2024 tournament with 105* off 63 balls against Chennai Super Kings, though it came in a losing cause, marking his first century after 12 years.
UnUnder his leadership, Mumbai Indians have won the IPL in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2020; they also won the Champions League Twenty20 competition in 2013. Rohit Sharma has been one of the most successful IPL captains since 2013, leading Mumbai Indians to five tournament victories. He captained the team in 158 matches, securing 87 wins, making him the second-most successful captain in IPL history, surpassed only by MS Dhoni.
He is one of seven players to score over 5,000 career runs in the competition, accumulating 7,046 runs with 2 centuries and 47 half-centuries, ranking second in total runs after Virat Kohli. In 2024, Rohit Sharma was replaced as captain by Hardik Pandya, sparking controversy among fans who were disappointed he was not reinstated.
Playing style
Rohit Sharma is an aggressive batsman who plays with style and elegance. He usually opens the batting in limited-overs cricket but has played most of his Test matches in the middle order. In limited-overs cricket, Sharma is widely recognised as one of the format’s most outstanding batsmen. Due to his attacking batting and ability to hit sixes, he is often referred to as the “Hitman.” Sunil Gavaskar considers Sharma’s batting style similar to that of Virender Sehwag and Viv Richards.
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The standout performer in both the limited overs series and the T20 series has been Rohit Sharma. Like Virender Sehwag before him, he is unstoppable once he gets going and like Viru he has an appetite for big hundreds. When Viru used to get out looking to hit another delivery out of the park, there used to be consternation around the ground, just like it is when Rohit gets out to a seemingly casual shot. If Rohit can turn his white ball exploits into red ball cricket, he will be the most destructive batsman in the world after Viv Richards and Virender Sehwag.
Television appearances
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | The Great Indian Kapil Show | Guest/Himself | Talk show on Netflix | [137][138] |
Commercial investments
The Rohit Sharma Cricket Academy, established in Dubai in September 2024 under the “CricKingdom by Rohit Sharma”brand and operated by franchise partner Grasport, ceased operations abruptly in May 2025 after approximately ten months. The academy enrolled around 35 families who prepaid for advanced cricket training but experienced significant operational difficulties, including mismanagement and financial instability.Training sessions became irregular, coaches went unpaid for extended periods, and communication with stakeholders diminished, leading to the suspension of all activities in mid-May 2025.In response, CricKingdom terminated its agreement with Grasport and announced plans to independently relaunch the academy by September 2025.
In June 2025, Indian cricketer Rohit Sharma made a strategic investment in Prozo, a supply chain firm specializing in supporting India’s new-age commerce sector. The exact amount of Sharma’s investment was not disclosed. Since its founding in 2016, Prozo has raised a total of $20 million from investors including Sixth Sense Ventures and Jafco Asia, operating 42 tech-enabled warehouses across more than 2.2 million square feet and serving over 24,000 pin codes, with a revenue run-rate of ₹250 crore.
Philanthropy
Sharma engages in numerous philanthropic activities, promoting various causes such as animal welfare, health, and children.He is particularly vocal about the protection of animals and has supported various initiatives and organisations to promote the cause.
In February 2015, Rohit Sharma joined People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) to support sterilisation of homeless cats and dogs. When supporting the cause Rohit Sharma said, “Sterilisation is important because I feel that if we can stop (the homeless-animal crisis), there will be control of population among the street dogs.”
In September 2015, along with Hollywood actors Matt LeBlanc and Salma Hayek, Rohit Sharma joined an anti-poaching campaign in Kenya to save the wild animals of Africa including the last surviving northern white rhinoceros. When joining the campaign Sharma said, “I have been a member of PETA and when I was informed about the cause, I thought it is my duty to join the anti-poaching drive. That’s what got me to Nairobi. I was fascinated to have a look at Sudan (the last northern white rhino) and the sniffer dogs who catch hold of the poachers.”
In November 2017, Sharma in a video on social media said that he had agreed with an online store to merchandise mobile phone covers and other items that would use his name and ODI jersey no. 45. Sharma also told his Twitter followers: “All proceeds from your purchases would go to an animal charity of my choice.”
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