I sound like a broken record every time I say retirement is a personal call. No one can tell someone else to retire. Each time I have said so, trolls have come and said ‘PR’, and that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli should immediately retire. The truth is they are the ones to decide. The decision is theirs to put their names forward for selection. Entirely their decision. And then, it is on the selection committee and the management to drop them if they so wish. And as long as they perform and score runs, we all know what the outcome will be. Nothing except performance matters, and while playing for India isn’t an entitlement, age isn’t a bar either. As long as Rohit and Kohli keep scoring, they will indeed wear the blue jersey.
Now that this series is done, the only thing that will confront these two players is how they keep themselves match-ready. They will indeed play against South Africa and, in home conditions, are likely to score as well. Then, there are the three ODIs against New Zealand. But will they play domestic cricket in the gap between the two series? Can they find a way to be match-ready? That’s the only thing that will perhaps decide what they do going forward. Personally, I do believe they should play domestic cricket to give themselves more match time. It was because Rohit did the hard yards in Adelaide that he looked so fluent in Sydney. There is no substitute for match time, and both should give themselves the best chance.
On the other hand, all retirement talk should now be dead and buried. At least for now. That they have the game is evident. That they have the hunger is also clear. Had it not been for that hunger, they would not have travelled to Australia for a three-match ODI series. Deep down, they clearly believe they can still win games for India, and Sydney was evidence that the confidence isn’t misplaced.
Rohit has scored many hundreds in his career. He had scored five in the 2019 World Cup. And yet, the 100 he scored in Sydney will perhaps rank at the top of the pile. This is because of the context. He was being doubted at every step, asked if he was holding up Yashasvi Jaiswal, and playing on reputation. Should he continue, and did he deserve to be around? As a proud performer who had led the team with distinction, it must have hurt him.
The physical transformation alone is proof of how much he wanted to make a point. And Adelaide was evidence of how committed he was. He could have been dismissed many times in the first ten overs. He looked really ugly on occasion. And yet, he stayed put. Played himself in, and made it count. Adelaide made Sydney possible. The fluency was back and the shot-making breathtaking at times. To dispatch Adam Zampa over extra-cover was a shot of real class. It was Rohit’s answer to everyone who questioned him. Class is permanent, and the statement was simple – drop us if you can. All we will do is perform.
Also Read: Rohit and Kohli’s last dance in Australia now the stuff of folklore
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