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India captain Shubman Gill finally addressed the sort of ongoing chatter around Rohit Sharma’s retirement, right after the ODI series deciding game against England at Lord’s . On Sunday, July 19, India fell short in the last match by 27 runs, while England walked away with the three match ODI series.

India had to put up with a tough total, conceding 387 runs, and that was without their pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah. During the chase, things looked decent at first, but then another middle order collapse , kind of derailed the visitors. Once that high scoring series wrapped up, Gill then spoke to the media about Rohit Sharma’s next steps and the bigger picture.

Rohit Sharma is now in the closing stretch of his international career. Even at 39, the seasoned opener is still focused on representing India at the 2027 ODI World Cup, a tournament that’s set to be staged across Africa.

While Rohit keeps trying to lock down a spot in India's World Cup squad, his uneven form across 2026 has already sparked quite a few questions about what comes next for him. A lot of critics were basically wondering, if he will be part of India’s long run plans for the marquee tournament or not, you know.

Earlier, an Indian Express report suggested that Lord's ODI might turn out to be Rohit’s last outing on the international stage. Even so, the BCCI later pushed back on those claims and dismissed them, but Shubman Gill still managed to share some useful perspective about Rohit’s mindset amid all those retirement rumours. At the post match press conference Gill said that most of the talk was coming from the media side. He also added that Rohit never really discussed retirement with anyone in the Indian dressing room.  

"He's not told us anything. I think it's all out in the media. But there has not been any discussion like that.". Gill’s remarks, in a way, made it pretty clear that Rohit Sharma has not actually decided to retire from international cricket yet.

Even if retirement had crossed Rohit’s mind before the Lord’s ODI, he still kept those thoughts tucked away sort of privately and remained fully locked in on doing the job for the team in a must-win kind of encounter. Rohit Sharma, for years, has been one of India’s biggest match-winners in ODI cricket. Still, age and a somewhat uneven, erratic phase of form did start to weigh on him in the 50-over format this year.

Before the Lord’s ODI, Rohit had made 241 runs in just eight matches, at an average of a bit over 30. Because of those figures, several reports went around saying that the BCCI might check, or consider, Yashasvi Jaiswal as Rohit’s replacement for the 2027 ODI World Cup if the veteran opener didn’t quite make the most of what many people thought was his last real chance.

Also Read | Rohit Sharma Stamps His Authority With Crucial Lord's Century Amid Retirement Rumours

However, Rohit answered his critics in a kind of spectacular fashion. The stylish Mumbai batter smashed 138 runs off just 110 balls , in the biggest match of his career . His brilliant century, yes it lifted his confidence back up and reminded the selectors that he still has the ability to win matches for India with his vast experience, plus quality batting.

Rohit Sharma’s retirement basically took over the headlines , after he only managed 37 runs across the first two ODIs against England. Still, his match-winning hundred at Lord’s has eased the pressure and also strengthened his chances of staying in India’s plans for the 2027 ODI World Cup. Rohit will next be back when India host West Indies for a three-match ODI series, scheduled from September 27 to October 3 .