Rohit Sharma, the long-time servant of Indian cricket, is more than likely to see his dream not come true. For the longest time, the Hitman has set his eyes on the World Cup. The right-handed batter came ever so close to lifting the title in 2023, but Australia spoiled the party, and ever since then, the desire has been burning bright to travel with the team and bring the cup home in 2027. To realise his dream, Rohit shed several kilos and got in the best possible shape. However, fate has something else in store for him.
According to a report in the Indian Express, Rohit is all set to play his last international match for the Men in Blue on Sunday at Lord's Cricket Ground. The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee has informed the 39-year-old that he's no longer in the plans for the World Cup and wants to give younger players like Yashasvi Jaiswal a chance in the playing XI.
As expected, Rohit wasn't pleased with the selectors' decision, and, according to an Indian Express report, he also spoke to a few BCCI officials on the sidelines of the ongoing England series. However, he didn't receive any response and was left unhappy.
The going has been tough for Rohit in the two ODIs against England, with scores of 11 and 26. The Cardiff game compounded his problems, where he looked all at sea. He lasted 47 balls in the middle, but only scored 26 runs.
Jaiswal has also been on Rohit's heels. The left-handed batter scored a century in the last ODI against Afghanistan but was dropped for the series against England as the selectors showed their faith in Rohit.
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Rohit was removed as the ODI captain last year and was replaced by Shubman Gill. Since the decision was made, the rumour mills have been rife with speculation about his and Virat Kohli's future in international cricket.
Rohit answered his critics in style, winning the Player of the Series award in the three-match ODI series against Australia. He performed well in the next contest against South Africa as well. However, since then, his results have been mixed in the series against New Zealand, Afghanistan and now England.
The Hitman also suffered a hamstring injury during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season with the Mumbai Indians, raising concerns about his fitness.
Under Rohit, India reached the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup and won the 2025 Champions Trophy. The batter retired from T20Is after leading India to the World Cup win in 2024, while he called time on his Test career last year after a poor Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.
However, Rohit has never won an ODI World Cup. He famously missed out on the squad in the 2011 edition, where the Men in Blue lifted the title under MS Dhoni. He then played the 2015 and 2019 editions as a player and led the side in 2023, but India failed to win the title on all three occasions.