Mumbai Indians’ (MI) star batter Rohit Sharma recently emphasized that winning matches and trophies is more important than scoring big runs. In an interview with journalist Vimal Kumar, the former MI captain shared his team-first mindset.
During the interaction, Rohit said that his priorities lie in winning trophies for his team rather than scoring a certain number of runs.
"My target has never been to score a certain number of runs in a season. I want to win matches and for that, I have always given my best. It doesn’t matter if you score 600-700 runs and aren’t winning a trophy. It (The runs) won’t matter," Rohit said as quoted on YouTube channel of Vimal Kumar.
Reflecting on his experience from the 2019 World Cup, where he scored five hundreds but India failed to win the title after losing to New Zealand in the semi-final, Rohit Sharma explained how that tournament shaped his mindset.
"I have learned my lessons during 2019 World Cup itself. If you aren’t able to reach final and win trophy then what will I do with those 500-600 runs? It might be good for me but not for the team," he added.
Rohit clarified that he focuses on making meaningful contributions that help the team, not just scoring runs. While he admitted that this was not his thought process earlier, his mindset changed when he noticed that Mumbai Indians lifted the trophy even when their player did not even have the Orange Cap.
"But I am not claiming that my 30 runs are helping the team to win. My focus is on making contributions that benefit the team. Before I used to think I have to score runs (but not anymore). Whenever MI has won a trophy, nobody from our team has won the Orange Cap. There’s a reason behind that."
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Rohit Sharma’s Role in Mumbai Indians After Captaincy Shift
Although Rohit is no longer MI’s captain, his approach to the game remains unchanged.Â
"Nothing has changed, everything is same. My job is batting. Even when I was captaining, my first role was that of a batter and then captain. As a batter I have to win matches. Now that I am not the captain, my job is to score runs and win matches for the team. Wherever needed, I do help."
Acknowledging Mumbai Indians’ struggles in recent IPL seasons, Rohit expressed optimism about the team’s future.Â
"Our last 3-4 seasons haven’t been that good and that’s what we have to change. We have discussed about this extensively between us – mistakes shouldn’t be repeated. We are in a very good stage and this season will be good for us," Rohit stated.
Rohit Sharma’s Performance in IPL 2025
The 38-year-old did not start well with the bat in IPL 2025, scoring just 82 runs in his first six innings. He came back to form, smashing two consecutive fifties versus Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), respectively.
In nine innings this season, Rohit has accumulated 240 runs at an average of 30 and a strike rate of 156.86.
Talking about Mumbai Indians, they are on track to make the playoffs. The Hardik Pandya-led side has won their last five matches on the bounce. MI is currently placed third on the IPL 2025 points table.
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