All speculations have been put to rest after Mumbai Indians announced former captain, Rohit Sharma as the 4th retention for the upcoming IPL 2025 on Thursday, 31st October. Rohit was replaced by Hardik Pandya last season as the captain of the new team and it was on the grapevine that the 2024 T20 World Cup-winning captain is looking to pursue his IPL career elsewhere.
But Mumbai Indians paid 16.30 crore for the 37-year-old veteran and India's Test and ODI captain opened up after the announcement. He said that it was the perfect 'spot' for him and feels that national team players, who are playing at the highest level should get the nod.
"Since I have retired from the [T20] format, I think this is the perfect [retention] spot for me,β Sharma explained. βThe players who are representing the national team at the highest level should get the preference. Thatβs what I believe in, and I am quite happy with it," Rohit Sharma said in a video uploaded by Mumbai Indians.
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β Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) October 31, 2024
He also added that he has created a lot of memories with MI and the city of Mumbai has always had a special place in his heart.
"I have played so much cricket in Mumbai; this is where I started my cricket career. This city is very, very special. When you play for such a long time, you create so many memories with the team. We havenβt had the best of seasons in the last two or three years, but we are quite determined to change that'', he added.
As far as Mumbai Indian's retentions are concerned, the 5-time IPL champions retained the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma and Tilak Varma before the big auction.
Mumbai Indians Retentions : Jasprit Bumrah (INR 18 crore), Suryakumar Yadav (INR 16.35 crore), Hardik Pandya (INR 16.35 crore), Rohit Sharma (INR 16.30 crore), Tilak Varma (INR 8 crore).