'It Was A Four...': India Captain Rohit Sharma Recalls Hilarious Exchange With Umpire

Rohit Sharma will go down as one of the greatest batsmen of the modern era, but it’s not just his batting that has earned him a big reputation. The Indian captain has earned a separate fanbase for his hilarious on-field quips and exchanges with players and umpires, not to mention his witty replies during press conferences and interviews.

One such exchange in recent memory that caught the attention occurred during the third T20I against Afghanistan in January. In the first two T20Is, the 36-year-old was dismissed for ducks in each of those two games. In the third game, he got off the mark with a boundary down the leg-side, which umpire Virender Sharma signalled as leg-byes. That prompted Rohit to approach the umpire and say, “Arey Viru, thigh-pad diya kya pehla four? Bat laga tha! (Hey Viru, did you signal for the thigh pad on the first four? I hit that with my bat!)”

WPL 2024 – FULL COVERAGE | SCHEDULE | RESULTS | POINTS TABLE | ORANGE CAP | PURPLE CAP

It was incredibly frustrating for Rohit Sharma to have been dismissed without opening his account in either game. For context, it was Rohit’s first T20I series in 14 months. The blistering opener had last played for India on November 10, 2022, in the humbling semi final exit at the hands of England in the 2022 T20 World Cup.

During a recent event in Bilaspur, Rohit Sharma recalled the incident and explained why he had the exchange with the umpire during the third T20I against Afghanistan. The skipper explained that the ball had caressed his bat instead of hitting his thigh pad, and that it was crucial for him to get those runs after not scoring any in the preceding two fixtures.

“When you’re coming off two zeros, we know how important scoring the first run is. I scored a four off the bat but the umpire probably didn’t notice it and signalled them as leg byes. I usually don’t look at the scoreboard much while batting. My mind is on batting, but when the over was completed, my eyes went up there and I saw that Rohit Sharma still on 0. I was like ‘I just scored a four. How is it still zero?’ So, I asked him ‘Viru, did you give it off the thigh pad?’,” Rohit Sharma revealed.

Rohit Sharma landed in Dharamsala via a chopper on Tuesday, March 5, to prepare for the upcoming fifth and final Test against England, which begins on Thursday, March 7, at the picturesque Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium. India lead the series 3-1 and are currently at the top of the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 points table.