Retirement rumours, Rohit Sharma turns up for optional practice at Lord’s

TimesofIndia.com in London: There were many chants when Rohit Sharma walked onto the iconic Lord’s cricket ground on Saturday. The mood remained the same when he left nearly three hours later.“The most important man in all of India!” shouted one fan. Another declared: “Ek century pakka kal! (One century tomorrow for sure!),” as Rohit smiled and took his seat in the luxury black bus. Runs may not be smooth for the ‘Hitman’. Opponents may be pushing him out of the party rather than supporting him to stay. But the fans don’t see things that way. Rohit Sharma has scored 891 runs since the start of 2025, behind Shubman Gill’s 974 and Virat Kohli’s 961. This year he has scored 241 runs, behind Gill’s 484 and Kohli’s 310. Pressure, though the team management denies it, must play a role.As Rohit and Kohli prepare for their last bilateral match in England, their contribution to the game has not been forgotten.“Obviously they’ve been phenomenal players for many years and it’s good to see them still playing the game,” England captain Harry Brook said ahead of the third ODI, with the series locked at 1-1.Rohit has scored just 37 runs in the ongoing series, 11 in Birmingham and 26 in Cardiff, raising questions as to whether the 39-year-old’s place in the Indian ODI team is under threat. Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak insisted there was no need to talk about any pressure.On Saturday, Morne Morkel added another proverbial arm around Rohit’s shoulder.“It’s hard work with the new ball up front. We’ve seen that throughout the series. The ball moves.“So batting up front is not easy. Rohit will handle it no doubt. He has done it in the past. He is experienced and brings calmness to the batting line-up. So no doubt there is absolutely no worry or concern about how he will approach it,” the South African added.His record at Lord’s does not inspire much confidence. The right-hander has played five matches on the field and scored just 133 runs, including 83 in a Test in 2021. In four white-ball matches, he managed just 29 runs with a top score of 15 in 2018. In fact, his last outing here ended with a 10-ball haul as England beat India by 100 runs.Hoping to change that, Rohit took part in an optional practice session ahead of the third ODI along with Ishan Kishan, KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav and Prince Yadav.Rohit took on Kuldeep, Mayank Yadav and the handgun specialists in a batting session that lasted just over an hour. It mostly looked good to the touch and controlled. During breaks, he joked and laughed with members of the support staff. After the end, he went to the bench, took off his gear and had a long chat with coach Gautam Gambhir. Even before meeting the nets, Rohit was seen standing next to Gambhir and Kotak on the Pan’s balcony, laughing heartily.While this turns out to be the last ODI of Rohit Sharma’s illustrious career, the crowd will no doubt turn up in large numbers to have one last look at one of India’s greatest cricketers with the white ball at one of the game’s most iconic venues.