[Watch] Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli pose with 2024 T20 World Cup trophy and tricolor after India beat SA in final, Anushka Sharma reacts
India captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli posed with the World Cup trophy and tricolor after their team’s win over South Africa in the 2024 T20 World Cup final in Barbados on Saturday, June 29. India had not won an ICC trophy since the 2013 Champions Trophy.
Rohit played a pivotal role against Australia and England, scoring 92 (41) and 57 (39), respectively, to help India reach the final. Kohli then delivered in the summit clash after a string of low scores. The right-hander smashed 76 runs off 59 balls, hitting two sixes and six boundaries to help India post 176.
The Men in Blue defended the score, thanks to Hardik Pandya (3/20), Jasprit Bumrah (2/18), and Arshdeep Singh (2/20).
Kohli and Rohit were clicked with the trophy and tricolor after the official celebrations. Sharing a video on Instagram, the International Cricket Council (ICC) captioned the post:
“The dynamic duo.”
Watch the video below:
Reacting to the post, Virat Kohli’s wife Anushka Sharma dropped a heart emoji.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retire from T20Is after 2024 T20 World Cup final
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli announced their retirements from T20Is following the 2024 T20 World Cup final. The duo finished as the highest run-getters in the format, with Rohit scoring 4231 (159 matches) and Kohli scoring 4188 (125 games), respectively. Pakistan captain Babar Azam is third with 4145 runs (123 matches).
While receiving the Player of the Match award post-match, Virat Kohli said (via Cricbuzz):
“This was my last T20 World Cup, this is exactly what we wanted to achieve. One day you feel like you can't get a run and this happens, God is great. Just the occasion, now or never kind of situation. This was my last T20 game playing for India. We wanted to lift that cup."
“Yes, I have, this was an open secret. Wasn't something that I was not going to announce even if we had lost. Time for the next generation to take the T20 game forward and do wonders as we have seen them do in the IPL,” he added.
Rohit Sharma, who won his second T20 World Cup after 2007, also took the opportunity to bid adieu to T20I cricket while speaking to reporters during the post-match press conference (via The Times of India):
"This was my last (T20I) 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,” he added.
Shubman Gill will next lead a 15-member India squad for the five-match T20I series in Zimbabwe. Several players from the Indian Premier League (IPL) have been rewarded with a place in the squad. All the matches will be played at Harare Sports Complex, with the opener set to be played on July 6.