- May 12, 2025
During all the madness, glamour, and last-over craziness of IPL 2025, a moment of calm and grace happened online, and cricket fans saw it happen. Indian skipper Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from Test cricket on May 7, and after the avalanche of accolades from fans, teammates, and other former cricketers, one reply stood out. Just one word. One simple word from Travis Head – finest.
And thinking about it, that word could have been the most perfect farewell of them all.
From Foes to Fans: The Unexpected Mutual Respect
What makes Head’s tribute to Rohit all the more fascinating is the context between these two. This is the same Travis Head who broke Indian hearts at the hand of Rohit in not one but two major finals. He scored a valiant 137 in the 2023 WTC final, following that performance with a match-winning century in the ODI World Cup final later in the year. Not to mention, he took that outrageous catch to dismiss Rohit when it looked like India was going to run away with the game over the Australians.
So, if anyone could’ve gloated or just stayed quiet, it was Travis Head. Instead, his one-word reply is a tacit support of what this game is ultimately about. Two fierce competitors on the field can recognize greatness, even if that greatness was able to slip between them and a trophy or two. These are the moments that remind us: the game is bigger than numbers, it is about stories, sportsmanship, and a tacit acknowledgement between warriors.
Rohit’s Red-Ball Run: Far More Than Just Numbers
Of course, the numbers are there – 4,301 runs in 67 Tests, an average just over 40, and a dozen centuries. But Rohit’s Test story was about so much more than just numbers in boxes on a scorecard. He went from a white-ball dynamo to a dependable, sometimes dogged, Test opener, taking the wind out of the sails of many critics.
He didn’t simply make the team; he was the anchor of it. The hundreds he scored at the hardest times – The Oval and Chennai included – demonstrated a technical skill that few people even knew he had. He steered that change as captain and helped India draw 1-1 in South Africa, and emphatically drew 4-1 with England previously in 2024.
IPL 2025’s Emotional Undercurrent
Although the excitement of IPL playoffs and Purple Caps captures almost all the attention, there is also a very poignant sub-plot happening – legends are leaving. Rohit’s Test farewell alone is indicative that the players we grew up with are gradually departing.
Abhishek Sharma, who plays with Head on the SunRisers Hyderabad team, summed it up perfectly when he wrote, Thank you for everything, big brother. Legend. Head’s summary of him being a top bloke capped it perfectly. When your biggest competitor on the field stops to reflect on your journey, you know you’ve done something worthwhile.
Isn’t it poetic that Rohit, a former T20 superstar, is retiring from Test cricket after creating memories in all three formats? He started by smashing Bangladesh in the first match of the 2007 T20 World Cup, leading India to victory in the 2024 T20 World Cup, and now he is walking away from the most difficult phase of the three formats – a full circle.
Travis Head only said one word — finest — but that one word has depth. It has the grudging respect of a rival, it has the acknowledgment of a career played out in well-earned, painstaking detail, and it has the type of class that goes beyond a field of play.
What are some of your favorite moments from Test Rohit? And, who do you think is ready to pick up the red-ball mantle? Let’s talk in the comments — because some stories, like Rohit’s, deserve to live on after the stumps have been drawn.
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