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Rohit Sharma reveals how his father reacted to sudden Test retirement: 'He was a little disappointed…'
Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from Test cricket on 7 May, more than a month before the five-match Test series in England was to get underway. And at an event in Mumbai, the 'Hitman' revealed that his father, like many of his fans, was left disappointed by his decision. read more
India skipper Rohit Sharma's last Test appearance was against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in December. AP
Modern-day batting great Rohit Sharma has finally spoken on Test cricket since retiring from the format last month, revealing that his father Gurunath wasn't too happy with his decision. The 'Hitman' added that his father has been a long-time admirer of the five-day format rather than 'new-age' cricket.
Rohit had quit Test cricket on 7 May, days before fellow batting great and former captain Virat Kohli made a similar announcement, with the two bringing the curtains down on their Test careers a little over a month before the five-match Test series in England.
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'My father worked in a transport company. Like I said, what my mom did, my father was very much involved in sacrificing things so that we could have our life. But my father always, since day one, has been a fan of Test cricket,' Rohit said at the launch of the book The Diary of a Cricketer's Wife, written by long-time teammate Cheteshwar Pujara's wife Puja, in Mumbai.
'He doesn't like this new-age cricket. I still remember that day I scored 264 in the ODI. He was like, okay, well played. Well done. There was no excitement from him. It's important to go out there and all that.
'But even if I used to get good 30s or 40s or 50s or 60s, in Test cricket used to talk to me about it in detail. So that's the kind of love he had for the game. And he's obviously seen you go up the ranks,' the 'Hitman' added.
Rohit had endured a poor run as batter as well as captain in India's last two Test assignments, against New Zealand and Australia at home and away respectively, which had put a question mark on his red-ball future with the Indian team.
He ultimately signed off from Test cricket with 4,301 runs in 67 appearances, collecting 12 centuries and 18 fifties along the way besides collecting 12 runs in 24 matches as captain.
'He has played a huge role in wherever I am today'
Rohit added that his father had witnessed his entire journey as a cricketer starting from his days as a school kid.
'You play in school cricket. Then you play U19, the Ranji Trophy, the Duleep Trophy, the Irani Trophy, and India A. And I've done all of that. So he has seen my journey through that. And through this, I've made it to the Indian team.
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'My father has seen me playing a lot of cricket with red ball, obviously. So he appreciates red-ball cricket a lot. And then, obviously, he was a little disappointed when I announced my retirement. But was happy as well at the same time. But, yeah, that's my father. And he has obviously played a huge role in wherever I am today. Without their help, it never would have been possible,' Rohit added.
Both Rohit and Kohli had retired from Twenty20 Internationals last year after helping India win the T20 World Cup, and will now be focusing on One-Day Internationals after bidding Test cricket goodbye, with their sights being set on the 2027 ICC World Cup.
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