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Former India captain Rohit Sharma has hinted he intends to continue playing till the 2027 ODI World Cup despite questions over his future. Rohit, who has retired from Tests and T20Is, continues to go strong for India in the fifty-over format, having undergone a significant physical transformation recently. The Hitman has been among the runs for India consistently.
There were doubts over his future after Rohit was replaced by Shubman Gill as India's ODI captain earlier this year despite leading the team to victory in the Champions Trophy 2025. However, the 38-year-old made a strong comeback in the ODI series against Australia, where he finished as the highest run-getter.
Rohit continued his fine form in the recently concluded ODI series against South Africa with a couple of half-centuries to help India win 2-1. The Hitman, who has previously spoken about his ambitions of playing the next ODI World Cup for India, continues to remain a vital cog in the batting line-up despite leaving captaincy.
On Sunday, Rohit attended an event at a college in Gurugram, where he spoke about his journey in cricket, and made it clear that he is not planning to retire anytime soon. Hinting about his future, Rohit compared his career to travelling in a plane and said he doesn't want to land anytime soon and stay up as long as possible.
"Mera bhi life kuch aise he tha; start karna bahut difficult tha (My life was also like this; it was very difficult to start). But once I took the momentum, once I sat in the plane, vo plane ne jo altitude pakda hai vo abhi tak neeche nahi aaya hai (the altitude that the plane has caught has not come down yet). I think that is what matters, and I don’t want that plane to land so quickly now. Mere ko abhi tak upar rehna hai (I want to stay up till now)," Rohit said at the event.
“We all know, I am sure everybody has travelled. That is why I gave this example of a plane. When a plane reaches an altitude of 35,000-40,000, you feel nice and relaxed; we eat and we sleep. So that is what life is. Once you take that momentum, I think it’s important you stay, and then obviously landing is also important, but it depends on you when you want to land," he added.
During the event, Rohit also opened up on the disappointment after India's shattering defeat in the 2023 ODI World Cup final. The former India skipper said he contemplated retiring from cricket after the loss, as he felt drained after putting everything into India's campaign in the tournament. India entered the final unbeaten, but lost to Australia in the final to miss out on the elusive trophy in the 2023 ODI World Cup.
