There had been strong rumours that Rohit Sharma was forced by the BCCI to retire from Test cricket. However, these claims have been shut down by former team manager Jaydev Shah, who clarified that Rohit was not pushed out. According to Shah, Rohit’s decision to quit red-ball cricket came from personal and cricketing reasons.
Meanwhile, Shubman Gill has officially taken over as India’s new Test captain and is already leading the side in the ongoing series against England.
Speaking on a podcast, Shah, who was the Indian team’s manager during the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy said: “He had a baby, he came back and he couldn’t make runs.”
Explaining why Rohit stepped away from Test cricket, Shah added: “Okay, he was out of form. He was dropped from the last Test (Sydney), but then he won the Champions Trophy. I think he thought it was time for him to play white ball more than red ball and give another cricketer a chance. I think the board was looking at things like, we have to prepare our team for the next championship. That’s a two-year cycle so it’sbetter if new players get set and get there.”
Rohit’s retirement from the longest format came just weeks before India’s squad was picked for the England series. Shah clarified further: “And it didn’t seem like Rohit could take it for two more years. He also had his injury, he didn’t play a couple of IPL matches because of that either. I think that’swhat he thought, and left for the team to grow and build nicely in the new cycle. Such big decisions are taken by big people like Rohit themselves.”
Rohit Sharma remains an active part of India’s ODI setup, and under his captaincy, the team won the Champions Trophy earlier this year.
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