The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has dismissed the reports that Rohit Sharma is set to retire from cricket after India’s third and final ODI match against England at Lord’s on Sunday. The veteran opener’s possible retirement from the sport came after reports suggested that the selectors had informed Sharma that he no longer had a role in India’s future ODI plans.
To end the speculation surrounding Sharma’s future in the national team, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said there has been no such conversation in this regard. Saikia further mentioned that Rohit Sharma will continue to remain a part of the ODI squad as and when he is retained. Notably, the BCCI secretary also said that neither the Lord’s match nor the series will be Rohit Sharma’s last.
BCCI secretary dismisses retirement speculation
Speaking to the media on Friday, Saikia denied these rumors and advised people not to be influenced by the reports doing the rounds about Rohit’s future.
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“There is a lot of speculation in the media about Rohit Sharma’s future. I want to categorically state that there has been no discussion about Rohit Sharma playing his last ODI at Lord’s on Sunday. Rohit Sharma is integral to India’s ODI plans, and he will continue to be a part of the team as long as he wants to play. In other words, ODI at Lord’s will not be his last match,” Saikia said.
This comes after reports surfaced on Thursday that the selectors had already informed Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal about the plans regarding the limited-overs series against England.
The BCCI officials claimed that the National selector panel wanted to give an opportunity to Jaiswal, who has been performing brilliantly whenever he got a chance to play limited-overs cricket.
As per the reports, quoting a BCCI source, “The selectors have informed Rohit he is not in their scheme of things beyond the England series. They wanted to move on after giving him one last chance to prove his fitness. The ball is now in Sharma’s court to decide his future.”
The speculations were doing the rounds on Friday after Rohit Sharma’s parents reached London, with reports suggesting that the ODI match against England at Lord’s could be his emotional farewell. However, it seems that the latest statement from BCCI has laid to rest the speculation about the veteran cricketer’s ODI future.
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