30/06/2024
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma announced their retirements from T20Is following India's thrilling seven-run victory over South Africa in the final of the 2024 Men's T20 World Cup. Kohli, who was awarded the Player of the Match for his outstanding 76 off 59 balls, revealed his decision immediately after the game, which saw India claim its second T20 World Cup title. Rohit Sharma confirmed his retirement during the post-match press conference.
Rohit Sharma stated, "This was my last [T20I] game as well. No better time to say goodbye to this format. I've loved every moment of this. I started my India career playing this format. This is what I wanted, I wanted to win the cup. I was very desperate for this title in my life. Happy that we eventually crossed the line."
Rohit, who debuted in the inaugural T20 World Cup against England in Durban in 2007, played 159 T20Is for India, amassing 4231 runs to become the country's highest run-scorer in the format. His career includes five hundreds, with a best of 121 not out against Afghanistan earlier this year, and 32 half-centuries. As a captain, he recorded 50 wins in T20Is, making him the most successful in the format, surpassing Pakistan's Babar Azam.
Kohli, speaking to the official broadcaster after receiving his Player of the Match award, said: "This was my last T20 World Cup, this is exactly what we wanted to achieve. One day you feel like you can't get a run and this happens, God is great. Just the occasion, now or never kind of situation. This was my last T20 game playing for India. We wanted to lift that cup.
"Yes, I have [announced my retirement from T20Is], this was an open secret. It was not something that I wasn't going to announce even if we had lost. It's time for the next generation to take the T20 game forward. It's been a long wait for us, waiting to win an ICC tournament. You look at someone like Rohit [Sharma], he's played nine T20 World Cups and this is my sixth. He deserves it."
Kohli, who made his T20I debut in June 2010, played 125 matches for India, scoring 4188 runs, including one century and 38 half-centuries. He won the Player of the Tournament awards in the T20 World Cups of 2014 and 2016. Kohli finished his T20I career as the second-highest run-scorer, behind only Rohit Sharma.