New Delhi: Rohit Sharma was at the centre of it all when he hit the nets ahead of the upcoming ODI series against Afghanistan, which begins on June 13. The Indian team trained in Mohali three days out from their first of the three ODIs against the Afghanistan side at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala.
Rohit stole the spotlight from the likes of newly-appointed T20 captain Shreyas Iyer as he looked to return to the groove ahead of an ODI return. Rohit was pegged back by a hamstring injury during the Indian Premier League 2026 and missed out on some matches. When he returned, he was used as an impact substitute to manage his workload. The former skipper was named in the ODI squad on condition of clearance from the BCCI CoE, which he has received ahead of the series.
Rohit finds groove late into the nets
Rohit entered the session and had a chat with strength and conditioning coach Adrian Le Roux as he eased into a series of light shuttle runs. There was no sign of discomfort as he completed his drill without an issue.
The anticipation grew much more when the Hitman padded up and began the batting session. He was scratchy at the start of his session, hinting of a batter returning from an injury and looking to find his touch. He was searching for timing and judgement rather than boundaries first up and was also plumbed in front by Nitish Kumar Reddy. Rohit left a few balls, and there were some play and misses, but then he found his rhythm.
The former skipper timed the balls, hitting Arshdeep Singh for a six over mid-wicket. He was still getting beaten on the outside edge as he faced the tall giant Gurnoor Brar and Prince Yadav. Rohit also displayed his pull shot off Gurnoor; however, that did not come off the meat of the bat.
Rohit tonks spinners for sixes later
Rohit’s fluency was on full display later when he faced the spinners. He hit a series of sixes off an off-spinner straight down the ground, showing his class with some effortless maximums. That capped off the session as the 39-year-old seems to have brushed aside any fears of fitness and return to the field for the Afghanistan ODIs.
