T20 World Cup 2024: Trend-setters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma leave contrasting but lasting legacies

While Kohli embodied the nature of T20 cricket as it began — smoke and magic — Rohit encapsulated what the format became: fire and brimstone.

End of an era: Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma with the T20 World Cup 2024 trophy. | Photo Credit: K.R. Deepak/The Hindu

The fans of the Indian cricket team know all about pantomime. From the disappointment of a semifinal defeat in the 2022 T20 World Cup and the harrowing pain of losing the final of the 50-over World Cup at home last year to now rising back up again triumphantly with a second T20 World Cup title — it’s a fairytale turnaround reminiscent of Cinderella.

Indian cricket’s rollercoaster journey has thus been a parable of modern cricket. The team’s T20 World Cup final victory at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados, with thousands of fans and a garnish of subsequent emotions and celebrations, made an ideal backdrop for two of the sport’s greatest practitioners and trend-setters, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, to bring the curtains down on their respective T20I careers.

Rohit joins the ranks of eight West Indians — Samuel Badree, Dwayne Bravo, Johnson Charles, Chris Gayle, Denesh Ramdin, Andre Russell, Daren Sammy, and Marlon Samuels — who have won the men’s T20 World Cup twice, while Kohli departs with the honour of being named Player of the Match in the T20 World Cup final, a record 16th time in T20Is. He also secured the one white-ball trophy missing from his cabinet.

While Kohli embodied the nature of T20 cricket as it began — smoke and magic — Rohit encapsulated what the format became: fire and brimstone. Revisiting their time together merits the use of the word awesome. Rohit exits the format as its highest scorer (4,231 runs in 159 matches), with Kohli close behind (4,188 runs in 125 matches) — a combined total of 8,419 runs, and much more.

Their retirement from T20I was not entirely unexpected. Both players had skipped the format after India’s 2022 T20 World Cup semifinal defeat, returning only in January this year with a focus on this T20 World Cup.

Rohit Sharma against Australia. | Photo Credit: K. R. Deepak

Rohit’s performance in this edition was a testament to his fresh all-out aggressive approach, regardless of the batting conditions. His 92 against Australia in St. Lucia was the third-highest score of the tournament, and his crucial 57 against England helped India post a competitive total on a difficult, turning pitch in the semifinal in Georgetown, Guyana.

Even in the final against South Africa, he fell cheaply while attempting his favoured sweep shot against Keshav Maharaj in the second over, but not before smacking him for two consecutive boundaries, including one reverse sweep. Rohit’s strike rate in the PowerPlay was consistently above 140, often setting the tempo for the rest of the team.

This aggressive style also benefited Rohit’s opening partner, Kohli, allowing him time to assess the conditions before accelerating. Despite a challenging campaign this World Cup, where he scored only 75 runs in seven innings, Kohli delivered when it mattered most. His crucial knock in the final helped India reach a formidable total of 176 for seven.

Kohli started briskly, hitting three beautifully timed boundaries off Marco Jansen in the first over of the innings. However, with India having lost three wickets for just over 30 runs in the PowerPlay, he had to adapt his approach to a more cautious one.

The progression of his innings in the final illustrates this shift in approach:

- First 5 balls: 14 runs

- Next 43 balls: 36 runs

- Last 11 balls: 26 runs

Kohli’s greatest asset in white-ball cricket has been his ability to break down targets into manageable goals. However, the rapid evolution of T20 cricket eventually caught up with him. The demand for higher strike rates and a less risk-averse approach meant his recent years in T20Is were a slow burn, with occasional brilliance like his 53-ball 82 against Pakistan in Melbourne (2022 T20 World Cup) or his 59-ball 76 against South Africa. These performances reminded us of his greatness, and we celebrated them with a certain reserve — less jubilant, more appreciative.

At 35, despite his numerous achievements, Kohli pushed himself to meet modern T20 demands, showcasing his insatiable drive to be the best. This relentless pursuit will be his lasting T20I legacy.

Rohit, on the other hand, will be remembered for acknowledging that T20 cricket has evolved more in the last three years than in the previous decade. While this may sound simple, it represents a multilayered challenge, especially considering that the team he was leading was a side that was traditionally focused on preserving wickets before launching an attack in the latter overs.

Virat Kohli in the final. | Photo Credit: K. R. Deepak

But when the demand to go big from the start appeared like Stanley Kubrick’s monolith from the cult classic 2001: Space Odyssey, triggering a shift in evolution, Rohit was front and centre of that transition, leading by example.

When India defends its T20 World Cup title at home in 2026, Kohli and Rohit will not be part of the squad. Yet, the new team will be building on an edifice that their exalted predecessors laid the foundation for.