In a triumphant moment for Indian cricket, Rohit Sharma's team capped off the 2024 T20 World Cup with a thrilling victory against South Africa. This win ended India's 11-year drought for an ICC title, with the Men in Blue edging out the Proteas by a narrow margin of seven runs in a thrilling final on June 29.
The impact of this victory transcended the cricketing world. Even the famously private MS Dhoni, known for his limited social media presence, emerged from his silence to celebrate with Team India. Captain cool Dhoni took to Instagram to congratulate Team India on T20 World Cup title triumph.
"WORLD CUP CHAMPIONS 2024.My heart rate was up,well done on being calm, having the self belief and doing what u guys did.From all the Indians back home and everywhere in the world a big thank you for bringing the World Cup Home. CONGRATULATIONS. arreeee thanks for the priceless birthday gift," Dhoni wrote on his Instagram post.
After the match, when asked about MS Dhoni's social media post congratulating the team, Rohit Sharma expressed his appreciation. He acknowledged Dhoni's legendary status, stating that it "felt good" to receive his praise.
“Dhoni was a fabulous player. He did a lot for us and the country. I felt good that he appreciated us after our victory," Rohit said, as quoted by Times Now.
Rohit Sharma's journey in T20 World Cups has been remarkable. He started his T20 WC career under the leadership of MS Dhoni, who captained India to victory in the inaugural edition of the tournament in 2007. A young Rohit was part of that championship-winning team.
He continued to be a key player in India's T20 World Cup campaigns under Dhoni's captaincy in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, and 2016. In 2021, he played under Virat Kohli's leadership as they reached the semi-finals. After the 2021 tournament, Rohit took over the captaincy from Kohli and led India to the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup, where they narrowly lost to Australia. However, redemption came in the 2024 T20 World Cup. Rohit, the only Indian cricketer to participate in every single T20 World Cup held so far, etched his name in history by leading India to victory. This made him the second Indian captain, after Dhoni, to lift the T20 World Cup trophy. Following this triumph, Rohit announced his retirement from T20 cricket, capping off a truly exceptional journey in the shortest format.
"This was my last 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 wanted this badly. Very hard to put in words. It was a very emotional moment for me. I was very desperate for this title in my life. Happy that we eventually crossed the line," Rohit said in post-match press conference.
Rohit's retirement came following Virat Kohli's last dance, who called it quits to the shortest format of the game after India's T20 World Cup 2024 glory.
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