‘Best Farewell Possible’: Emotional Hardik Pandya On Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli Retirement After Winning T20 World Cup Win

T20 WC 2024: It was an emotional farewell for two of the most celebrated players in T20I cricket. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma retired from the shortest format of the game after leading India to a T20 World Cup victory in Barbados on Saturday, June 29. Rohit, the captain, led from the front throughout the campaign in the USA and West Indies, while Virat Kohli, the former captain, delivered in the final when it mattered most.

Hardik Pandya On Virat Kohli And Rohit Sharma

It was the perfect platform for the duo to bid goodbye to T20Is on a winning note. Vice-captain Hardik Pandya paid a heartfelt tribute, saying, “I am very happy for both Rohit and Virat… two giants and legends of Indian cricket thoroughly deserved this. It has been so amazing playing with them for so many years. We all will miss them, but at the same time, this is the best farewell we can give them.”

Virat Kohli And Rohit Sharma’s Fairytale Ending Of T20 Career

Time heals everything, they say, and it did for Rohit Sharma. Seven months ago, he was an emotional wreck, but on Saturday, his joy knew no bounds. Rohit teared up, hugged his partner-in-crime, Virat Kohli, and announced his retirement from T20Is with a grin on his face. It was a rare and fulfilling moment for him.

India needed Virat Kohli’s anchoring role in the final after they were 34 for 3 on a bright morning in Barbados against a formidable South African bowling unit. Kohli scored 50 off 48 balls, one of his slowest innings in the format, but he accelerated towards the end, finishing with 76 off 57 balls and helping India post a total of 176, the highest in a men’s T20 World Cup final.

In the match, Virat Kohli’s brilliant knock of 76 runs off 59 balls helped India post 176 runs for 7 wickets. The game came down to the wire as Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller threatened to take it away from India with some powerful hitting. But Hardik Pandya struck at a crucial moment, dismissing Klaasen and bringing India back into the game. Rohit Sharma, who also bowled the penultimate over, dismissed Miller with the first ball of that over. He kept his nerve and finished the over with precision, securing India’s T20 World Cup title.

With Rohit Sharma deciding to play only ODIs and Tests from now on, it remains to be seen who will fill his place in T20Is. Shubman Gill has been named captain for the Zimbabwe tour, while Jasprit Bumrah and Suryakumar Yadav have been given a rest after the hectic T20 World Cup campaign.