Dinesh Karthik Gives Verdict On India’s White-Ball Evolution Under Rohit Sharma’s Captaincy
Dinesh Karthik praises Rohit Sharma's leadership in transforming India's white-ball cricket, leading to consecutive ICC trophies with an aggressive approach.
Retired wicketkeeper batter Dinesh Karthik has given his verdict on India’s evolution in white-ball cricket since Rohit Sharma took over as captain. The Men in Blue remained spotless on Sunday, March 9, defeating New Zealand by four wickets to win the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy.
After India’s historic win, Karthik decoded Rohit’s approach in limited-overs cricket during a live segment with Sky Sports. “I think Rohit Sharma the captain decided if I am going to be the captain from here on, this is how I want my team to play, and I’m not going to rely on anybody. I am going to take it upon myself to know and show the other members of the team what intent means. And I think that changed the outlook of how India has played from there on," he said.
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Rohit has been on a roll in recent years, guiding India to back-to-back trophies in the last two ICC events. The Men in Blue won 23 out of 25 matches while losing just one match across the 2023 ODI World Cup, 2024 T20 World Cup and 2025 Champions Trophy tournaments.
The team wasn’t always like this, especially when Rohit was appointed as the squad’s captain in November 2021. The change of guard couldn’t stop India from losing to England in the 2022 T20 World Cup semi-finals.
In the same segment, Karthik discussed how India had previously struggled to cross the finish line in major ICC events. “2019 was a bit of a marker. We lost the semi-finals, and then they tried hard and in bilaterals, they were good. Team India played in a very different manner. 2022 was when the marker was set. We played very differently in the league stage. But come the big game, people backed away. The pressure got to Team India," he said.
After India’s loss to England in 2022, Rohit took the initiative to transform the squad completely. He opted for a more aggressive brand of cricket, which helped them reach the 2023 ODI World Cup final without losing a single game.
Rohit doubled down on his approach and secured the results they needed to win the knockout stages of ICC events. Speaking about India’s mentality shift, Karthik said, “They [India] never made it past the finishing line. And that changed post that T20 World Cup that happened in the Caribbean."
After securing his second ICC crown as captain, Rohit will hope to win a record-extending seventh Indian Premier League (IPL) trophy in 2025.
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