“The entire world bows down to him”

Rohit Sharma recently became only the third Indian captain to win a World Cup title. By clinching the T20 World Cup 2024 title, Rohit joined the likes of great Indian captains like Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni.

After winning the trophy, Rohit announced his retirement from the T20I format to bring an end to an illustrious career. He finished as the highest run-scorer in T20Is at the time of his retirement.

While everyone was lauding Rohit Sharma for his great achievement, his school director Yogesh Patel was one of the proudest persons in the world to see such a great cricketer grow in front of him.

Watch: ‘Luckily, I got them as mentors’ – Abhishek Sharma honors Yuvraj Singh, Brian Lara on Guru Purnima

Yogesh Patel hails Rohit Sharma for making the nation proud

During an exclusive interview with India Today, Rohit Sharma’s school director Yogesh Patel revealed that he gave Rohit the freeship and allowed him to play cricket despite any hurdles.

“I gave freeship to Rohit in 1999. We gave him the scholarship on merit. Rohit was staying at his uncle’s place at that time when my coach supported him during one of the tournaments,” Yogesh Patel said.

Yogesh Patel further said that it was a proud moment to see Rohit grow up in front of them. He thanked Rohit for making the school and country proud.

“We used to advise him in school, not anymore. Now, the entire world bows down to him. I take a lot of pride as he has grown up in front of us. His performances in school tournaments were stellar. Rohit not only made our school proud, but the whole nation proud. I thank him for coming to our school and putting us on the international map,” Mr. Patel stated.

“It was a surprise and shock to us” – Yogesh Patek on Rohit Sharma’s decision to retire from T20Is

When asked about Rohit’s decision to retire from T20Is, Yogesh Patel replied that it was a huge surprise for him to see Rohit retire. But he added that the Indian captain knows what he is doing and is matured enough to take his decisions.

“It was a surprise and shock to us and the whole nation because everybody wanted to see Rohit as the captain; if not the captain, then as a player. But when he announced his retirement, I felt that it was a good decision as he bowed out on top. He is a very wise boy; he is smart, and he is mature and talented as well. So, he knows what he needs to do,” Mr. Patel responded.

Rohit Sharma played a key role in India’s triumph in the T20 World Cup 2024. The Indian captain scored 257 runs in eight matches at an average of 36.71 and a strike rate of 156.70. He finished the tournament as the second highest run-scorer of the tournament.

Rohit’s quick starts at the top was the highlight of the tournament for India. In an important Super 8 fixture against Australia,  Rohit smashed a blistering 92 off 41 balls against Australia and then scored a valuable half-century against England in the semi-finals.