Rohit Sharma Clarifies Funny On-Field Banters, Says They Are Not ‘Intentional’

Indian captain Rohit Sharma, known for his humorous banter in his distinct Mumbaikar accent, has addressed the viral stump-mic conversations with Indian players during live matches. Rohit explained that the recordings often captured his usual conversations with fielders, as his fielding position in the slips made his remarks audible. He also recalled one such funny banter with Umpire Virender Sharma during the India vs Afghanistan T20 series in January this year.

During a recent event, Rohit Sharma was asked about having a favourite among the viral one-liners from the past. The India skipper responded by mentioning that he simply keeps talking to the players and doesn’t have any particular preferences for specific lines. 

Funny One-Line Banters Are Not Intentional: Rohit Sharma

Rohit emphasised that his humorous banter on the field is not intentional. As a captain, he strategically positions himself in the slip cordon to assess DRS situations, leading to regular communication with fielders. These spontaneous discussions inadvertently get captured on the microphone.

“See, I don’t have any favourite line as such and I don’t even do it intentionally. Now I am the captain so I stand in the slips, because the angle from there helps me get a better look at the fielders and take stock of DRS. So I keep talking to the fielders and it gets recorded,” he said (loosely translated from Hindi).

Captain Rohit Sharma talking about on his Viral stump mic conversation with umpires in T20I match at the event.

– The Hitman, What a lovely character he is! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/t9K4H2Ykku

— CricketMAN2 (@ImTanujSingh) March 5, 2024

Rohit Sharma Recalls The Banter With Umpire

He also recalled a notable incident that occurred during the third T20I against Afghanistan in Bengaluru back in January. After being dismissed for a duck in the preceding two matches, Rohit hit a boundary in the third game. However, umpire Virender Sharma signalled it as a leg-bye, prompting Rohit to deliver a humorous remark, saying, “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!)” This exchange quickly went viral on social media.

Here’s The Funny Video From IND vs AFG T20 Series

🔊Agree to disagree! 😉

Skipper Rohit Sharma pleads his case to the umpire for a turned-down boundary! 🤯#GiantsMeetGameChangers #JioCinemaSports #INDvAFG #IDFCFirstBankT20ITrophy pic.twitter.com/vGmrtQgtjh

— JioCinema (@JioCinema) January 17, 2024

Rohit shared insights into the incident, explaining that his reaction stemmed from the pressure of not having scored any runs in the series up to that point. It was crucial for him to get on the scoreboard, and when the leg-bye was signalled instead of acknowledging his bat’s contribution to the boundary, he couldn’t resist reacting with humour.

“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 said during the event.

Coming to cricket, Rohit Sharma will lead India in the final India vs England Test of the five-match Test series slated to begin from March 7 (Thursday) in Dharamsala. India have already won the series and are leading by 3-1.