The question on everyone’s mind during the third and final India-Afghanistan T20I was whether
Rohit Sharma had retired hurt or was retired out. In the penultimate ball of the first Super Over, the Indian skipper walked back, leaving fans curious about the nature of his departure.
Rohit, who made a return to the T20I series after more than a year, faced challenges in the first two matches, being dismissed without troubling the scorers.
However, in the third T20I, he made a solid comeback and scored a remarkable 121* off 69 balls, propelling India to a total of 212 for 4 in 20 overs.
Afghanistan then matched India’s score of 212, leading to a Super Over at the jam-packed M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
In the first Super Over, Afghanistan set a target of 16 runs.
Chasing 17 to win, Rohit, having scored 13 runs in the fifth delivery, was retired out. The Super Over concluded in a tie, prompting another Super Over.
Rohit’s return to bat in the second Super Over sparked a massive debate.
According to the rules, if a player is not declared out in the first Super Over, they are eligible to bat again.
So, how did Rohit manage to bat again in the second Super Over?
South Africa batting legend AB de Villiers clarified that one cannot bat again if declared out in the first Super Over. However, he emphasised that Rohit was retired hurt, permitting him to bat in the second Super Over.
“Double Super Over unbelievable (smiles). You can’t bat again if you are declared out in the first super over. I think maybe they will claim that he was retired hurt due to an injury and maybe it was a scoring mistake to show him out,” De Villiers said on his YouTube channel.
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Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott hinted at minimal communication between officials and the players as the whole episode panned out.
“I have no idea (whether Rohit retired hurt or out). Has there ever been two Super Overs? That’s what I am trying to say. We keep setting these new rules. What I am trying to say is we kept testing the rules, we kept testing the guidelines,” said Trott in the post-match press meet.
India went on to clinch the series 3-0.