Mhatre approached Rohit before the Indian U19 team travelled to England last year.
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batter Ayush Mhatre opened up on his heartwarming meeting with childhood idol, Rohit Sharma, who gave him a signed bat and two hours of advice at his home.
Mhatre made a stunning IPL debut for CSK against MI in 2025, scoring a fearless 32 off 15 balls. Following the match, the 18-year-old interacted with Rohit, who shared a few encouraging words and even told him he could reach out anytime.
Mhatre approached Rohit before the Indian U19 team travelled to England last year, prompting the latter to invite the youngster over to his home, offering valuable guidance that him inspired.
In an interview with CSK’s YouTube channel, Mhatre recalled the moment, saying: “So I was about to go on the England tour, and I wanted to speak to him a bit. I messaged him. Then I said I wanted to meet him, so he called me directly. He called me from his side and said, tell me what you want to say. I told him that I am going on this tour and wanted to meet. He asked me, where do you stay? I said Virar. He said, will you come from Virar to meet me? I said yes, I can come anywhere to meet you, I just want to meet you.”
“He said it’s not like that, we can also talk on video. I said no; I want to meet you in person and talk. Then he gave me his home address, and I went to his house the next day. I spoke to him for at least 2 hours. I mean, it was crazy that he gave me so much time; that’s a big thing for me. My idol gave me time, so it was a dream day for me. I didn’t even realise how time passed, 2 hours went by. It felt really good talking to him,” the Mumbai-based cricketer added.
Ayush Mhatre had a standout 2025 tour to England, leading the India U-19 team to a 3-2 Youth ODI series victory. He dominated the Youth Test series, specifically scoring 102 and 32 in the first match at Beckenham, followed by 80 and 126 off 80 balls at Chelmsford.
Mhatre led India to their record-extending sixth ICC U19 Men's Cricket World Cup title in February this year. He is currently plying his trade in the IPL 2026 season for CSK.