Rohit Sharma announces retirement from Test cricket, to continue playing ODIs

Rohit Sharma brought the curtains down on his Test career on Wednesday by announcing his retirement from the format with immediate effect. The ‘Hitman’ announced his decision in a ‘Story’ posted on his Instagram account more than a month before India’s next Test assignment – a five-Test series in England which gets underway at Headingley on 20 June.

“Hello everyone I would just like to share that I am retiring from Test cricket. It’s been an absolute honour to represent my country in whites. Thank you for all the love and support over the years. I will continue to represent India in the ODI format,” Rohit wrote in the Instagram Story which also had an image of his Test cap, numbered 280.

Indian captain Rohit Sharma retired from Test cricket… via Instagram Story that disappears in 24 hours. Isse zyada serious announcement Malaika Arora gym jaate time karti hai pic.twitter.com/YYPmUCo0fH

— Sagar (@sagarcasm) May 7, 2025

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Rohit had retired from Twenty20 Internationals along with Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja after leading India to victory in the T20 World Cup in the US and the Caribbean last year. The 38-year-old, however, continues to shine as batter as well as leader in the ODI format, having led from the front in India’s victorious Champions Trophy campaign recently, and has already stated that he is eyeing the 2027 World Cup in South Africa.

End of an era

Rohit thus retires from the format with 4,301 runs to his name from 67 appearances at an average of 40.57, collecting 12 centuries and 18 fifties along the way. He had made his Test debut against West Indies at Kolkata’s iconic Eden Gardens during batting legend Sachin Tendulkar’s farewell series, smashing 177 on debut in a performance that earned him the Player of the Match award.

That would be followed by an unbeaten 111 in the very next game at the Wankhede Stadium, where Tendulkar made the final appearance of his 24-year international career.

The ‘Hitman’ would have a start-stop run in the Test format while batting in the middle order instead of opening the innings like in ODIs and T20Is since the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. It wasn’t until the home assignment against South Africa in 2019 that he finally was promoted to the top of the order, and Rohit instantly seized the opener’s spot with knocks of 176 and 212 respectively in Visakhapatnam and Ranchi respectively.

Rohit also took over as captain across formats after Kohli’s resignation from the Test format in January 2022 following a series defeat in South Africa, starting with a 2-0 sweep against Sri Lanka at home. He would go on to play 24 Tests as captain, with India winning 12 and losing nine while drawing three.

Rohit’s reputation as Test captain as well as batter, however, took a major beating towards the end of 2024; not only did he struggle to collect runs against New Zealand at home and against Australia Down Under, India also lost five out of six Tests in a space of a couple of months, including a 0-3 whitewash against the Black Caps.

India, as a result, missed out on the ICC World Test Championship final for the first time after finishing runners-up in the previous editions.