India’s ODI skipper Rohit Sharma showered rich praise on Virat Kohli by recalling how the star batter’s innings in the T20 World Cup 2024 final against South Africa helped calm nerves in the dressing room.
Reflecting on India’s historic triumph, Rohit conceded that he was panicking in the dressing room after the team lost three wickets cheaply.
The Men in Blue had won the toss and opted to bat in the marquee fixture, but Rohit, Rishabh Pant, and Suryakumar Yadav fell early, leaving the side reeling at 34/3 in the powerplay.
However, Kohli, who had struggled throughout the tournament in the USA and the West Indies, produced his best in the summit clash, scoring a measured 76 off 59 deliveries. He played the anchor role in a match-turning 72-run partnership with Axar Patel, who contributed a fluent 47 off 31 balls while playing the aggressor.
After Axar’s dismissal, Kohli added 47 runs for the fifth wicket with Shivam Dube (27 off 16 balls). Kohli provided the much-needed acceleration in the death overs, propelling India to competitive 176/7 on a good surface in Barbados.
“If you hit three boundaries in the first over, then you’ve started well. That’s what every cricketer wants. The experience of playing for India for so many years helps. You can control your emotions, control your thoughts, and stay in the moment,” Rohit told JioStar, reflecting on Kohli’s knock.
“I’m sure he was thinking the same: ‘Today is the day I need to be focused.’ Not worrying about what happened before. And he played a brilliant innings—a fantastic partnership with Axar. After losing those three wickets up front, there were obviously a lot of nerves in the dressing room.
“I was panicking. I wasn’t comfortable. I thought we’d let them into the game. Of course, in the back of my mind, I always believed our lower middle order—although it hadn’t batted much during the tournament—had made an impact whenever given the opportunity,” he added.
Rohit also commended Axar’s innings, calling it underrated but crucial to India’s first ICC title win after 11 years.
“Not many people are talking about Axar’s knock, but it was the game-changer. Scoring 47 off 31 at that stage was vital. And we needed one player to bat through the innings—Virat did that brilliantly.
“Then we had Shivam, Axar, and Hardik, who came in and played their parts. I thought it was a very good total,” he said.
Rohit Sharma recalled how India bounced back from the heartbreak of losing the 2023 ODI World Cup final to Australia in Ahmedabad and went on to lift the T20 World Cup 2024 trophy.
“It was by far the best moment of my life, of my cricketing career—to lift the trophy. It meant so much to all of us, to that group. We’d experienced the heartbreak of coming so close and falling short. That’s why it was special. We planned meticulously. We worked hard every single day, constantly thinking about how to win the World Cup. That’s why every player’s emotions came pouring out on that day,” he remarked.
Rohit also revealed how former head coach Rahul Dravid was convinced to stay in the role after his two-year contract ended with 2023 ODI World Cup final heartbreak.
“Rahul bhai wanted to step down after the 2023 World Cup. We had to convince him to stay. There was another World Cup in six months. We told him, ‘Let’s give it one more shot, we’ve worked so hard.’ He agreed—and I’m sure he feels it was the right decision in the end,” Rohit stated.
