Cricket in India is almost a religion and millions of fans look up to their favourite stars with passion and dedication. The Indian Premier League has been wildly successful since its inception in 2008 and not only does it combine cricket with entertainment, it has also been the launchpad of several superstars. Rohit Sharma’s achievements in T20 cricket as well as his domination in the Indian Premier League definitely qualifies him for the title of being the new God of IPL.
Having won the Indian Premier League six times (five times with Mumbai Indians and once with Deccan Chargers), Rohit holds the record for the most number of titles won by a player in IPL history. He has left his mark on IPL cricket as both a player as well as a captain and has had a unique career.
Why is Rohit Sharma the new God of IPL?
Everywhere Rohit Sharma has gone in the Indian Premier League, success has followed. Rohit began his IPL career with Deccan Chargers and stayed with the franchise till 2010. Although they finished at the bottom of the table in the inaugural season, they went all the way to lift the IPL title in 2009 under the leadership of Adam Gilchrist, thus becoming the second team after Rajasthan Royals to lift the IPL title. Rohit played a fundamental role that season. He scored 362 runs and also picked up 11 wickets which included a hattrick against Mumbai Indians of all sides.
In 2011, Mumbai Indians roped in Rohit Sharma and was handed the captaincy in the middle of the 2013 IPL season when Ricky Ponting decided to step down. Since then, they’ve never had to look back. Rohit Sharma guided Mumbai Indians to five Indian Premier League titles since 2013 with the latest one arriving in IPL 2020.
The newly appointed Indian cricket captain across all formats has demonstrated his brilliant cricketing sense during his IPL captaincy stint with Mumbai Indians. Not only has he led them to five titles, Rohit also holds the highest win percentage of 59.68 as captain, beating Chennai Super Kings’ MS Dhoni (59.60). He has played 129 IPL matches as captain and has won 75 of those.
Besides his captaincy genius, Rohit Sharma is also an incredible batsman. He times his shots to perfection and has an effortless bat swing. Hailing from Mumbai, comparisons with the God of cricket Sachin Tendulkar are pretty common and so far, Rohit Sharma has justified the hype. When on song, Rohit’s hard-hitting knocks are undoubtedly one of the best things in the world of cricket.
He has been a consistent run-scorer in the Indian Premier League and is a bankable option. Rohit Sharma is the third-highest run-getter in the history of IPL with 5,611 runs from 213 matches. He is also one of six batsmen to cross the milestone of 5,000 IPL runs besides Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Suresh Raina, David Warner and AB de Villiers.
Rohit Sharma in Indian Premier League over the years
| Year | Matches | Runs | Average | Strike Rate | Highest Score | 100s | 50s |
| 2021 | 13 | 381 | 29.30 | 127.42 | 63 | 0 | 1 |
| 2020 | 12 | 332 | 27.66 | 127.69 | 80 | 0 | 3 |
| 2019 | 15 | 405 | 28.92 | 128.57 | 67 | 0 | 2 |
| 2018 | 14 | 286 | 23.83 | 133.02 | 94 | 0 | 2 |
| 2017 | 17 | 333 | 23.78 | 121.97 | 67 | 0 | 3 |
| 2016 | 14 | 489 | 44.45 | 132.88 | 85* | 0 | 5 |
| 2015 | 16 | 482 | 34.42 | 144.74 | 98* | 0 | 3 |
| 2014 | 15 | 390 | 30.00 | 129.13 | 59* | 0 | 3 |
| 2013 | 19 | 538 | 38.42 | 131.54 | 79* | 0 | 4 |
| 2012 | 17 | 433 | 30.92 | 126.60 | 109* | 1 | 3 |
| 2011 | 16 | 372 | 33.81 | 125.25 | 87 | 0 | 3 |
| Career | 213 | 5611 | 31.17 | 130.39 | 109* | 1 | 40 |
Rohit Sharma has begun preparations for the upcoming IPL 2022. This will be his 14th IPL season and his ninth season as captain of the Mumbai Indians. The team is also expected to enjoy a considerable advantage going into the season as the entire IPL will be played in the state of Maharashtra and in the cities of Mumbai and Pune.
It remains to be seen whether Rohit Sharma will be able to guide Mumbai Indians to a historic sixth IPL title.
FAQs
Who is the God of IPL 2021?
Although Royal Challengers Bangalore were eliminated in the playoffs, Harshal Patel emerged as the God of IPL 2021. He won the Indian Premier League Purple Cap for picking up the most wickets all season. Harshal Patel also equalled Dwayne Bravo’s record of most wickets in a single IPL season (32). The West Indies all-rounder had picked up 32 wickets for Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2013.
Who is the God of IPL 2020?
KL Rahul emerged as the God of IPL 2020 because of his tremendous batting prowess with Punjab Kings. He scored 670 runs to finish as the highest run-scorer and take home the Orange Cap. Rahul also scored a century and five fifties that season.
Who is the new God of cricket?
Rohit Sharma has emerged as the new God of cricket. He has been an accomplished opening batsman who holds several records in white-ball cricket. Rohit has also done immensely well in his relatively new Test career so far and has recently been appointed as the captain of India, replacing Virat Kohli in all three formats.
Who is the old God of IPL?
When talking about the old God of IPL, some of the best players who have played in the league come to mind. Suresh Raina was known as Mr. IPL for his consistent performances with the bat, Chris Gayle, David Warner and AB De Villiers are three of the most successful overseas batsmen in IPL. MS Dhoni always makes the IPL interesting and intriguing as a consistent competitor while Virat Kohli holds several records in the tournament. Lasith Malinga is the highest wicket-taker in IPL history.
