India's Rohit Sharma reveals his all time best T20I knock ever

Former India T20I captain Rohit Sharma on Wednesday called his 92-run knock against Australia in the T20 World Cup 2024 as his best T20 innings to date, but it was the nerve-wracking final against South Africa that he described as the pinnacle of his cricketing career.

Speaking to Indian media, Rohit opened up about the tense atmosphere in the Indian dressing room after a disastrous start in the final, where India lost three wickets for just 24 runs. 

Rohit, who had already stepped down from T20Is, admitted that panic briefly took hold.

“I was panicking. I wasn’t comfortable. I thought we’d let them into the game. Of course, at the back of my mind, I always believed in our lower middle order—although they hadn’t batted much during the tournament, they had made an impact whenever given the opportunity,” Rohit said.

He credited Virat Kohli’s composed half-century as the turning point, saying it was essential to have one batter anchor the innings.

“We needed one player to bat through the innings—Virat did that brilliantly. The experience of playing for India for so many years helps. You can control your emotions, your thoughts, and stay in the moment. I’m sure he was thinking the same, today is the day I need to be focused,” he remarked.

Rohit also highlighted Axar Patel’s 47 off 31 balls as a 'game-changing' contribution that has not received enough attention.

“Not many people are talking about Axar’s knock, but it was the game-changer. Scoring 47 at that stage was vital,” he added.

Both stalwarts subsequently announced their retirement from Test cricket in May 2025, just days apart.

Reflecting on the World Cup victory, Rohit said, “It was by far the best moment of my life, of my cricketing career—to lift that trophy.”

India’s eventual triumph in the final capped a glittering T20I career for Rohit Sharma, who bowed out as India’s all-time leading run-scorer in the format.

He finished with 4,231 runs in 159 matches, including five centuries. Kohli, who also retired from T20Is after the World Cup, ended with 4,188 runs in 125 games.