Rohit Sharma gets standing ovation from Wankhede crowd after possible farewell knock

Mangalore Today News Network

Mumbai, May 18, 2024: MI opener Rohit Sharma finally found some form in the Indian Premier League 2024 as he ended the season with a half-century against LSG on Friday, May 17 at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The 37-year-old got off the mark with a boundary on just the second ball of his innings and there was no looking back for the former MI skipper who went on to register his second fifty-plus score of the season.

The right-handed batter went on to score 68 (38) with the help of ten fours and three sixes and got his team off to a stellar start chasing a massive score of 215. However, his innings was brought to an end by Ravi Bishnoi in the 11th over as he got a thick outside edge which went straight to Mohsin Khan at short third man.

As Rohit made his way to the pavilion, the Nagpur-born cricketer got a standing ovation from the crowd at the Wankhede Stadium, the home ground of MI. Notably, the ongoing season is considered to be the last one in the blue jersey for Rohit who was removed from the captaincy ahead of the season and was replaced with Hardik Pandya. However, the move didn’t go down well with MI fans who felt that their captain was mistreated by the franchise. The 37-year-old has led Mumbai to all of their five titles after being appointed as the skipper midway through a struggling season in 2013.

MI’s forgettable season in IPL 2024

Replacing Rohit at the helm, Pandya didn’t have a memorable season on his return to MI from GT whom he led to triumph in their debut season in 2022. The all-rounder’s captaincy stint with Mumbai started with three consecutive losses and didn’t improve much as the season progressed as MI could only win four out of their 13 fixtures. The five-time champions are currently placed on the last spot on the points table with eight points to their name.

Meanwhile, Rohit finished the season as the highest run scorer for MI with 427 runs to his name from 14 innings at an average of 32.07 with one hundred and one fifty. Notably, the opening batter had the best-ever season since 2016 as he crossed the 400-run mark just the second time in the last eight years.

Courtesy: India Today