- May 9, 2025
After Rohit Sharma quietly shared via Instagram that he was retiring from Test cricket, the fans were reminded of another great Indian player – MS Dhoni – who did something almost identical. Both were captains. Both retired without fanfare. But the more you delve into it, the more you discover: Rohit and Dhoni’s Test cricket careers accurately mirror one another, it’s almost weird. Here are five eerily similar things that will make the most doubtful fan stop and say, ‘Wait, what?!’
Both Retired as Captains
Walking away from cricket and retiring as captain of the Test cricket team of India? Well, to have done that is hardly a common occurrence. Both MSD and Rohit Sharma retired this way. Dhoni played his last match in December 2014, in the Boxing Day Test against Australia at MCG, which finished as a draw, and he announced his retirement shortly afterwards. In 2024, Rohit’s last Test also had him as captain, he captained India in that match during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which India lost. In both cases, they had not retired before their last series, but captained until their last ball.
The MCG Farewell Club
Both players played their last Tests at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, both on the same day—Boxing Day—26 December: Dhoni’s in 2014 and Rohit’s in 2024. Both times, Australia batted first; both times, they set a target of more than 300; both times, the Indian team couldn’t win. And when the date, venue, and opponent mount up that spookily, you have to wonder.
Last Home Test at Wankhede
This one is for the Mumbai connection. Dhoni played his last home Test1990 in 2013 at the Wankhede Stadium—the same match that Sachin Tendulkar retired in. Rohit’s story is almost the same. His last home Test came just now in early 2024 against New Zealand—at the Wankhede. Just like Dhoni then he headed overseas for the Australia series, which turned out to be his last chapter. It’s almost like Wankhede is included in a hidden clause in Indian cricket contracts: One last mega-flourish before the final farewell.
Steve Smith: The Common Disruptor
Here’s a crazy one – Steve Smith scored a hundred at No. 4 in both Dhoni’s and Rohit’s last Tests. In 2024, he was vice-captain and scored a match-winning 140, also at No. 4. Different decade, same venue, same opposition, same batting position, same story. Smith knows how to ensure Indian retirements come with a hefty dose of Aussie dominance.
One Double Century Each
To date, both Rohit and Dhoni have made one Test double century in their careers, both in commanding home victories. Dhoni’s double ton was 224 against Australia in Chennai in 2013, which was one of his hardest-working performances.
Rohit scored 212 against South Africa, six years later in Ranchi, as an opening batsman and established his class as a red-ball cricketer. Yes, they indeed have some of the most disparate Test averages, but each of their respective double tons stands as a point of individual pride in a career that is usually about captaincy.
Maybe cricket’s just poetic? Or perhaps these legends simply knew how to leave when it suited them, with class, calm, and intrigue. Which, if any of these reflections, surprised you the most? Let us know in the comments – and tag a cricket nerd who needs to read this on a day like today!
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