Left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed recently revealed an incredible story about Indian ODI captain Rohit Sharma, expressing his desire for the batting legend to continue playing international cricket for the next decade.
Rohit Sharma career has been packed with accomplishments, including many ICC awards, IPL crowns, and game-winning shots.
However, what typically distinguishes him is his treatment of teammates, particularly during difficult moments. Khaleel, who presently plays for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the IPL, has seen this side of Rohit firsthand. The pacer recounted an incident in 2019 that altered his outlook on confidence and self-belief.
“The journey has been a combination of good and bad moments. It was during 2018-19 when I started out under the captaincy of Rohit Sharma in the Asia Cup. He gave me a lot of confidence, in spite of me being junior to him, he made me aware of the fact that I have something special in me.
Such a successful cricketer taking the time to talk to me and inspiring me, boosted my confidence. At that age, you don’t really know what you have in yourself or what to do with yourself. I played for India for a year and a half after that and in 2019, an ODI against West Indies was my last game. The next two years were full of injuries,” he told .
During a T20I series against Bangladesh in Rajkot, Khaleel had a tough outing with the ball. He managed just one wicket. As the team prepared to leave the stadium, Rohit stayed back to have a one-on-one chat with the young pacer. Khaleel also met Rohit at the National Cricket Academy during the Duleep Trophy and was impressed with his fitness. He expressed that the batter can continue playing for more 10 years and serve Indian cricket.
“I feel Rohit Sharma should play for the next 10 years for the good of Indian cricket and that’s my personal feeling. When in 2019, we were playing a series against Bangladesh in Rajkot, once I didn’t have a great day and only got one wicket, so he came to me and spoke to me personally in the dressing room. The team was leaving the stadium and he stayed back to have a one on one with me and told me how I should be.
He told me that I am unaware of my own capabilities. When we were getting out of the stadium, all the fans were screaming for Rohit bhai and he told me that ‘all of this should happen for you too’ and that I should wish that for myself and stay positive,” he added.
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