Former Mumbai Indians (MI) fielding coach Jonty Rhodes heaped praise on Rohit Sharma for his captaincy ahead of the forthcoming two-Test match series against Bangladesh, starting on September 19, with the first match set to take place at MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Rohit Sharma stands out as one of the most successful captains in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL), having led MI to five titles—the joint most under his leadership.
Rhodes also remarked that Rohit may not possess the same technique as the legendary Sachin Tendulkar and that he has faced significant criticism regarding his foot movement.
“I mean he hasn’t changed at all; it’s so ridiculous, you know. I just picture his walk when he walked out to bat—he would have a few throw-downs in the net or even shadow-hitting, you know, it was just majestic. So he didn’t practice as hard as such. Maybe he practiced away from the nets at times, but just his technical ability—I think he doesn’t always have the best technique. He’s been criticized, not a lot of foot movement, but because he’s so relaxed at the crease, his hands flow so well. It’s been great to see him because he stayed, you know, he stayed the same and he stayed true to himself,” said Jonty Rhodes on the Aleena Dissects YouTube channel.
“Rohit Sharma is still the same guy; he hasn’t changed a bit. It’s so ridiculous—messes around with the teammates, funny guy, and players don’t feel stressed under his captaincy,” Jonty added.
However MI has appointed Hardik Pandya as Rohit Sharma’s successor for captaincy, and the franchise has struggled to perform over the last two seasons. Rohit led MI from 2013 to 2023, establishing himself as one of the most successful captains in IPL history.
