Rohit Sharma: 2023 review in numbers
Team India captain Rohit Sharma had an impressive 2023 with the willow in international cricket. The 36-year-old was sensational in the ODI format, not just as a batter but as a captain as well. Rohit featured in 27 ODIs in 2023, scoring 1,255 runs at an average of 52.29 with two hundreds and nine fifties.
The aggressive opener led from the front in the World Cup for the Men in Blue, clobbering 597 runs in 11 innings at an average of 54.27 and a strike rate of 125.95. Rohit took it upon himself to get the team off to flying starts and despite the risky approach, he ended up as the second-leading run-getter in the tournament.
If we look at his Test stats in 2023, the right-handed batter played eight matches, scoring 545 runs at an average of 41.92 with two hundreds and as many fifties. Rohit ended 2023 on a disappointing note, registering scores of 5 and 0 against South Africa in the Centurion Test. He did not play any T20Is.
As the Indian captain prepares for new challenges in 2024, we review his performances across formats in the year gone by in detail.
Rohit's performance in matches India won in 2023
Rohit played in three Tests which India won in 2023, scoring 286 runs at an average of 71.50 with two hundreds. Two of the matches were played against Australia at home in which he scored 183 runs at an average of 61 with the aid of one ton. The other Test was played in West Indies in Roseau in which Rohit hit a hundred.
In ODIs, he featured in 21 games that the Men in Blue won, smashing 1073 runs at an average of 59.61 with two centuries. Apart from two three-figure scores, the Indian captain also hammered eight half-centuries in ODIs that the team won.
Rohit's performance in matches India lost in 2023
Rohit was part of three Tests that India lost in 2023. He performed very poorly in these matches, scoring 87 runs at an average of 14.50. The 36-year-old scored 24 runs in the defeat to Australia in Indore in March.
He scored 15 and 43 in the World Test Championship (WTC) final defeat to the same opponents at The Oval. In India’s last Test of 2023 in Centurion, he managed only five runs, being dismissed by South African pacer Kagiso Rabada both times.
In ODIs, the Indian skipper played in five matches that the Men in Blue lost, scoring 171 runs at an average of 34.20 with a best of 81, which came against Australia in Rajkot.
Averages at the start and end of 2023
If we compare Rohit’s average at the start and end of 2023 in Tests and ODIs, he was averaging 46.13 after 45 Tests at the start of 2023. He ended the year with an average of 45.45, following a mixed run in red-ball cricket.
In ODIs, Rohit began the year averaging 48.73. Courtesy of some stupendous batting efforts, a number of them coming during the World Cup, the opener ended 2023 with a slightly improved average of 49.12.
Top knocks in each format
Now, let’s take a look at Rohit’s top three knocks in each format in the year 2023.
Tests
120 vs Australia in Nagpur (February 2023)
103 vs West Indies in Roseau (July 2023)
80 vs West Indies in Port of Spain (July 2023)
ODIs
87 vs Engand in Lucknow (October 2023)
101 vs New Zealand in Indore (January 2023)
132 vs Afghanistan in Delhi (October 2023)
T20Is - N/A
Rohit Sharma’s IPL record in 2023
Apart from captaining Team India in international cricket, Rohit also led Mumbai Indians (MI) during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 edition. The 36-year-old did not have a great season with the bat. In 16 matches, he scored 332 runs at a disappointing average of 20.75 and a strike rate of 132.80 with two half-centuries - a best of 65.
Mumbai Indians finished fourth in the IPL 2023 league points table, with eight wins and six losses in 14 matches, to qualify for the playoffs. They bowed out of the tournament with a 62-run loss to Gujarat Titans (GT) in Qualifier 2 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
In a significant move, all-rounder Hardik Pandya has replaced Rohit as MI captain for the 2024 IPL season.