Former India coach Kris Srikkanth revealed that he apologized to Rohit Sharma in 2020 for leaving him out of India’s 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup squad. Despite Sharma being good enough, Srikkanth explained that the selectors opted for a squad full of all-rounders, a strategy inspired by India’s 1983 Cricket World Cup winning campaign.
Rohit, who is yet to win the ODI World Cuphe made his debut against Ireland and before the 2011 match had scored over 1,200 runs in around 57 matches, including seven half-centuries. One of his first highlights came during the 2007–08 Commonwealth Bank Series in Australia where he scored 235 runs.
“Poor guy, he missed it,” Srikkanth said in a podcast for The Week. “I still feel sorry for him. One day in 2020, I said to Rohit, ‘I’m sorry, boss.’ It wasn’t intentional, we just wanted more versatile options. The team was full of all-rounders.”
Srikkanth added that the selection approach was heavily influenced by the 1983 team. “If you look at the 1983 World Cup team, Roger Binny was the all-rounder and the main all-rounder was Kapil Dev. Apart from Srikkanth, Syed Kirmani and Sunil Gavaskar, almost everyone bowled.”
Krish Srikkanth reveals why he dropped Rohit Sharma from the 2011 World Cup squad:
I still feel sick about him today. I said to Rohit last year, sorry boss. It’s not on purpose, but we just want to take the semi-versatile ones. Our thought process was similar to that pic.twitter.com/mm9IpVXDdx— TEJASH (@LoyleRohitFan) April 22, 2026
WHY WAS ROHIT NEEDED IN 2011?
This strategy proved effective, with India’s all-rounders playing a key role throughout the 2011 tournament. Yuvraj Singh stood out, scoring 362 runs and taking 15 wickets in nine matches to win the Player of the Tournament award. His performances, despite battling a then-undiagnosed cancer, were key in several high-pressure situations. Other players like Suresh Raina, Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar and Yusuf Pathan also contributed with the ball when needed, underscoring the all-round depth of the team.
“At the end of the day, who was the player of the tournament? Yuvraj Singh – with bat and ball,” Srikkanth said. “In some matches, Sehwag, Sachin and Raina played a few overs. Even Yusuf Pathan was a useful all-rounder. Unfortunately, because of this all-rounder and heavy approach, Rohit Sharma couldn’t find a place. He was good enough but missed.”
Missing out on the ODI World Cup has been a recurring theme in Rohit Sharma’s otherwise decorated career and the 2011 omission remains significant. The MS Dhoni-led team made history by becoming the first team to win the World Cup on home soil. Despite this setback, Rohit later established himself as one of India’s most accomplished white-ball batsmen and a successful captain.
IPL 2026 | IPL Schedule | IPL Points Table | IPL Player Stats | Purple Cap | Orange Cap | IPL Videos | Cricket News | Live Score
– The end
Published on:
23 Apr 2026 15:43 IST
