Rohit Sharma's legacy as a limited-overs colossus is etched in cricketing history. The former India captain, who retired from T20Is after the 2024 World Cup triumph, owns staggering records in white-ball cricket. He remains the only batter with three ODI double-hundreds and held the record for most T20I centuries (5) for a significant period. His ability to clear the ropes was legendary, finishing his T20I career with a world-record 205 sixes in 151 innings.
The Day of Carnage: Indore, December 22, 2017
Eight years ago, on December 22, 2017, Rohit Sharma produced one of the most devastating displays of power-hitting in T20I history. The stage was the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore, and the opponents were Sri Lanka. Fresh from a dominant ODI series where he had smashed a double century, Rohit carried his ominous form into the T20Is.
Sri Lankan skipper Thisara Perera's decision to bowl first after winning the toss backfired spectacularly. Indian captain Rohit Sharma and his opening partner KL Rahul launched a brutal assault from the very first over. The Powerplay yielded 59 runs, setting the platform for a monumental total.
Rohit reached his fifty in a blistering 23 balls, laced with seven fours and three sixes. The hundred-run opening partnership was raised in just 52 balls. What followed was pure carnage. Rohit shifted into an even higher gear, treating the Sri Lankan bowlers with utter disdain.
A Record-Equalling Blitz
In the next 12 deliveries, Rohit plundered five more sixes and four boundaries to race to a monumental century. He reached the landmark in just 35 balls, equalling the then-world record set by South Africa's David Miller just two months prior. With this feat, he broke KL Rahul's previous Indian record of a 46-ball hundred.
Rohit's innings finally ended at a majestic 118 runs off 43 balls. His knock was a breathtaking spectacle of 12 fours and 10 sixes, compiled at a staggering strike rate of 274.4. Rahul played a superb supporting hand, scoring 89 off 49 balls. Powered by this opening stand of 165 runs, India posted a mammoth 260 for 5 in their 20 overs.
Sri Lanka's Brave But Doomed Chase
Faced with a daunting target of 261, Sri Lanka showed early fight. Openers Niroshan Dickwella (25) and Upul Tharanga (47 off 29) provided a quick start. A fiery 109-run second-wicket partnership between Tharanga and Kusal Perera (77 off 37) even raised hopes of an improbable chase when they reached 145 for 1.
However, India's spin twins, Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, engineered a dramatic collapse. Chahal dismissed Tharanga in the 14th over, and Kuldeep struck a decisive blow in the next over by removing Perera and captain Thisara Perera on consecutive deliveries. He added a third wicket in the same over, effectively ending the contest.
From a strong position of 145 for 1, Sri Lanka crumbled to 161 for 5 in the space of 10 balls. They were eventually bowled out for 172 in 17.2 overs. Chahal finished with 4 for 52, while Kuldeep took 3 for 52.
The Legacy of a T20I Giant
The Indore century was Rohit Sharma's second in T20Is. He would go on to score three more, including a career-best 121 not out against Afghanistan in 2024. His other tons came against England (2018) and the West Indies (2018).
Rohit, alongside his longtime teammate Virat Kohli, bid farewell to T20Is after the 2024 World Cup victory. He retired as the format's then-leading run-scorer, with 4,231 runs from 159 matches at an average of 32.05 and a strike rate of 140.89. His tally included five hundreds and 32 fifties. Kohli ended his T20I career with 4,188 runs from 125 games.
While Pakistan's Babar Azam has since surpassed Rohit's run aggregate in 2025, the 'Hitman's' legacy as one of the most destructive and prolific openers in T20I history remains untarnished. The Indore innings stands as a timeless testament to his unparalleled ability to decimate bowling attacks.
