DUBAI: India captain Rohit Sharma has no plans to quit the 50-overs format anytime soon, the opener said after guiding the team to the Champions Trophy title in Dubai.

Sharma quit Twenty20 Internationals immediately after leading India to their second 20-overs World Cup title in West Indies last year.

Speculation was rife that the opener, who turns 38 next month, might do likewise after India beat New Zealand in the 50-overs final on Sunday.

Though not asked about retirement plans, Sharma headed off speculation by ending his post-match press conference saying,

“One more thing, I’m not going to retire from this format, just to make sure that no rumours are spread moving forward.”

Sunday’s win marked India’s second successive title in a global tournament organised by the International Cricket Council.

Under Sharma, India have lost just one match — the final of the home 50-overs World Cup in 2023 to Australia — in their last three ICC events.

Like in the T20 World Cup last year, India were unbeaten throughout the tournament and Rohit saved his best for the final when he smashed a match-winning 76 in a low-scoring contest.

“I know how important it is to score runs in the powerplay, because we saw in all five games that after 10 overs, it becomes very difficult (to score) when the field spreads and spinners come in,” India’s Test and One-day international captain said. “It becomes a little tough because the pitch is already slow and we’re batting second.”

Sharma, who scored a record five hundreds in a single ODI World Cup in 2019 — even though India crashed out in the semi-finals — said team success gave him more joy than personal milestones.

“I contributed a lot in the 2019 World Cup, but we didn’t win. It wasn’t fun.

“Even if you score 30-40 runs and win the match, you get more satisfaction and happiness.”

Published in Dawn, March 11th, 2025