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It came as a surprise to many that India's veteran opener Rohit Sharma occupied the no.1 spot on ICC ODI batter rankings for the first time in his career. Even a purple patch in ODI World Cup 2019 featuring five centuries did not help him reach the summit. His former teammate Dinesh Karthik was baffled and questioned how ICC rankings work.
“I am surprised that in 2019, he was somewhere in the top.” Karthik said during a discussion on Cricbuzz. “Five hundreds, he got five hundreds.”
“To be honest, I don’t know how the rankings work. There must be a method that I am not aware of. But just the way he batted, he was poetry in motion.”
At 38 years and 182 days, Rohit became the oldest player to be crowned no.1 ODI batter. He dethroned the new ODI captain Shubman Gill who was not at his best.
Rohit is at the top with 781 rating points, 17 more than second-placed Ibrahim Zadran. Meanwhile, Gill has slipped to the third spot. He has 745 rating points.
Rohit’s numbers on Australia tour
Playing his first international match since the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 triumph, Rohit did not get back into the groove immediately. He was surprised by the bounce generated by Josh Hazlewood in Perth and departed after scoring just eight runs. In the Adelaide ODI, he got off to a very slow start. He managed to make up for it and scored 73 runs but India lost the match. In the third ODI in Sydney, he scored an unbeaten 121 in the run chase.
Rohit wants to help youngsters
Rohit became India’s third-highest run-scorer for India in ODIs. He surpassed former India captain Sourav Ganguly. He was named ‘Player of the match’ and ‘Player of the series’ in Sydney.
“You expect tough conditions in Australia. Quality bowlers. Gotta understand things and try your best. Haven't played for a long time, good prep. Slightly confident coming in. We couldn't win the series - will still take a lot of positives. Young side, there will be a lot of learnings for them. When I came into the squad, I remember how seniors helped us, it's now our job to do the same. Never easy playing in Australia, just abroad. We need to share our experience, help them create game plans. I still go back to basics in Australia all these years. It's something I need to pass on. I love playing in Australia in general. I've had a decent memory in SCG - great pitch, ground and crowd. I love doing what I do and hope to continue to do that,” Rohit said in the post-match presentation.
Rohit will be back in action for the three-ODI series at home against South Africa starting on November 30.
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