Rohit Sharma

Did You Know?

• Sharma was born into a Marathi-Telugu family in Bansod, Nagpur, and raised by his grandparents and uncles in Borivali due to his father's low income.
• He married Ritika Sajdeh on 13 December 2015; they have a daughter born on 30 December 2018 and a son born on 15 November 2024.
• Sharma made his List A debut for West Zone against Central Zone in the Deodhar Trophy in March 2005, batting at number eight and scoring 31 not out.

International career

Sharma made his Test debut in November 2013 at Eden Gardens against West Indies, scoring 177, the second-highest individual score on debut by an Indian. He followed with 111 not out in the second Test at Wankhede Stadium. After being out of the Test team since 2017–18, he earned a recall for the 2018–19 tour of Australia, where chief selector M. S. K. Prasad cited his natural game suiting bouncy Australian pitches. Sharma played in the first Test in Adelaide, scoring 37 and 1 in an Indian victory, but sustained a minor injury that caused him to miss the second Test.

He recovered for the Boxing Day third Test at Melbourne, scoring 63 not out to help India win both the Test and the series. He then returned to India for the birth of his daughter. In October 2019, in the third Test against South Africa, Sharma scored his first Test double century, making 212 in the first innings. He was named vice-captain of India's Test team during the 2020 tour of Australia, replacing Cheteshwar Pujara.

During a home series against England in 2021, he scored a century described by The Guardian as one of the greatest this century, putting on 167 runs with Ajinkya Rahane while making 161 runs. He top-scored in both innings of the low-scoring third Test in Ahmedabad with scores of 66 and 25. Sharma finished the series with 345 runs, the most for India, at an average of 58. He scored his first overseas Test century on 4 September 2021 with 127 against England at The Oval, reaching 3,000 Test runs. In February 2022, he was appointed captain of India's Test team, succeeding Virat Kohli.

Indian Premier League career

Sharma joined the IPL in 2008, signed by the Deccan Chargers for US$750,000 a year. In 2009, he won the IPL as vice-captain of the team. In the 2011 auction, he was sold for US$2 million to the Mumbai Indians. He scored his maiden IPL century in 2012 with 109 off 60 balls against Kolkata Knight Riders. In 2015, he scored 98 off 65 balls in the first match against Kolkata Knight Riders but in a losing cause.

In 2018, he scored 94 off 52 balls against Royal Challengers Bangalore in a 46-run win. He scored his second IPL century in 2024 with 105 off 63 balls against Chennai Super Kings, also in a losing cause. Under his leadership, Mumbai Indians won the IPL in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020, and the Champions League Twenty20 in 2013. He led Mumbai Indians in 158 matches, securing 87 victories, making him the second-most successful IPL captain after MS Dhoni. He is one of seven players with 5,000 career runs in the competition, having scored 7,046 runs with 2 centuries and 47 half centuries, and is the second-highest run scorer after Virat Kohli. In 2024, Sharma was sacked as captain in favour of Hardik Pandya, sparking controversy among fans.

Achievements

Rohit Sharma holds the record for the highest individual score in a One Day International, having smashed 264 against Sri Lanka at Eden Gardens on 13 November 2014. He remains the only cricketer to have struck three double-centuries in ODIs. The International Cricket Council named him the ODI Player of the Year in January 2020. During the 2019 Cricket World Cup, he became the first batter to score five centuries in a single edition of the tournament.

On 5 October 2019, in a Test against South Africa, he became the first player to hit two centuries in a match on his debut as an opening batsman. Later in that series, he surpassed Shimron Hetmyer’s record for the most sixes in a Test series. On 11 October 2023, during the 2023 World Cup match against Afghanistan, he broke Chris Gayle’s record for the most international sixes, reaching 553. Two days later, in an India-Pakistan clash at the Narendra Modi Stadium in front of over 100,000 fans, he became the first Indian to complete 300 sixes in ODIs.

On 22 October 2023, against New Zealand, he became the first Indian to hit 50 ODI sixes in a calendar year. On 2 August 2024, he overtook Eoin Morgan for the most sixes in international cricket as captain. His 19 Player of the Match awards are the most by an Indian in IPL history. On 30 November 2025, he broke Shahid Afridi’s record for the most sixes in ODIs.

On 23 June 2026, he received the Padma Shri Award at Rashtrapati Bhavan for his long-standing contributions to Indian cricket and leadership, which included guiding India to victory in the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy.

Philanthropy

Sharma engages in philanthropic activities promoting animal welfare, health, and children. In February 2015, he joined PETA to support sterilisation of homeless cats and dogs, stating that sterilisation helps control the population of street dogs. In September 2015, along with Matt LeBlanc and Salma Hayek, he joined an anti-poaching campaign in Kenya to save wild animals including the last surviving northern white rhinoceros. He said he joined because it was his duty.

In November 2017, Sharma agreed with an online store to merchandise mobile phone covers and other items using his name and ODI jersey number 45, with all proceeds going to an animal charity of his choice. In 2018 on World Rhino Day, he was announced as WWF-India Rhino Ambassador. Ravi Singh, CEO and Secretary General of WWF-India, welcomed him. After taking a pledge for rhino conservation, Sharma said his love for rhinos sparked when he heard about Sudan, the last male northern white African rhino, and that he researched the best way to help, learning that 82% of the world's rhinos reside in India. He said he was honoured to be WWF-India's rhino ambassador to spread awareness and contribute to rhino protection.