Rohit Sharma turns 38 today (April 30). Arguably one of the best captains Team India has to date. From a middle-order batter to an opener, now a lovable and influential figure in world cricket, his journey over the years has proved many critics wrong with his performance and leadership qualities.

When Sharma came in charge of the Men in Blue Brigade, it was not easy to put on the show left by the former MS Dhoni, who has multiple ICC trophies under his belt. Rohit started his leadership journey under immense pressure. Today, the right-handed batter we see on the field was very different a few years ago. He changed his approach for the team. Unlike modern cricketers with crazy shots, Sharma's batting approach is classy, old school, and mostly not driven by run rates. The famous phrase we all know— wisdom comes with age—fits Rohit Sharma. 

Cricket has changed a lot; now, run rate plays a huge role in 22 yards. Rohit turned his batting approach into a more aggressive one as an opener to provide the much-needed boost the team needed at the top of the batting order. He could have easily bagged more all-time records, but he started to play only for his team as he grew more mature. 

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Most consecutive matches won by Indian skippers in ICC events:

1 - Rohit Sharma (13 matches)

2 - MS Dhoni (12 matches)

3 - Rohit Sharma (10 matches)

4 - Sourav Ganguly (8)

5 - MS Dhoni (7)

Rohit's defining moment of his career as a captain came when Team India won the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup after a heartbreaking run in the 2023 ICC ODI World Cup. 

The 2019 WC was an important talking point for Indian cricket. India was a favorite to win the series, but the loss against New Zealand. Almost the same scenario in the 2022 T20 World Cup: again, a hot favorite team, India, was knocked out of the tournament. Rohit then was the skipper of the team after Virat Kohli left the leadership role.

We need to change: Rohit Sharma 

People started to criticize Rohit for another successful ICC trophy chase. Rohit had to find out where the team was lacking the most. Then the infamous line from Rohit came out to former cricketer Dinesh Karthik: 'Ab hame badalna padega (Now we need to change).' These were not only some words; these were the pure emotions that came out of Sharma. 

World Cup 2023 saw Rohit Sharma with a different approach— attack from the first ball. India went to the final stage without losing a single match, then Australia got the better of the boys in blue. Then on June 29, 2024, an historic date for Captain Rohit Sharma and Team India, a successful T20 World Cup triumph.