India pacer Khaleel Ahmed has opened up about his deep admiration for Rohit Sharma, calling him one of the most compassionate and inspiring leaders he has ever played under. In an emotional conversation with RevSportz, Khaleel recalled a heartwarming moment from 2019 when Rohit’s personal encouragement left a lasting impact on his career.
Khaleel revealed that the incident happened during a series against Bangladesh in Rajkot. Despite having an ordinary outing with just one wicket, he was surprised when Rohit, who was captaining the side at the time, stayed back after the match to speak with him one-on-one.
“When in 2019, we were playing a series against Bangladesh in Rajkot, once I didn’t have a great day and only got one wicket, so he came to me and spoke to me personally in the dressing room. The team was leaving the stadium and he stayed back to have a one-on-one with me and told me how I should be,” Khaleel recalled.
“He told me that I am unaware of my own capabilities. When we were getting out of the stadium, all the fans were screaming for Rohit bhai and he told me that ‘all of this should happen for you too’ and that I should wish that for myself and stay positive.”
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“I’ve never seen such a person, such a captain” – Khaleel Ahmed on his bond with Rohit.
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Khaleel said the gesture left him in awe of Rohit’s leadership style:
“A captain like him, talking to me like that after the match, made me wonder how kind a person he was. I’ve seen him do the same thing with Rishabh. ‘What a man! What a captain!’ I would say. People don’t even look at you when you have a bad match but as a captain he is something else.”
He also mentioned meeting Rohit recently at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) during the Duleep Trophy.
“Recently I met him at the CoE during the Duleep Trophy and he looked very fit so I asked him to stay like that and keep playing. I have hardly seen such a captain and person in my life, he is a gem and I have a lot of respect and love for him.”
Rohit Sharma, who has led India to multiple ICC finals and guided Mumbai Indians to five IPL titles, is widely regarded as one of the most successful modern-day captains. His calm approach, ability to back players in difficult phases, and man-management skills have made him a “player’s captain.”
Khaleel summed it up perfectly:
“I feel Rohit Sharma should play for the next 10 years for the good of Indian cricket and that’s my personal feeling.”
