How Rohit Sharma and his Indian team have been dominating ICC tournaments

Following that, India completed unbeaten campaigns in the 2024 T20 World Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy. Had they beaten Australia in that final in 2023, they would have held all three ICC limited-overs trophies together – no team has accomplished this feat. Australia in 2010 and India in 2014 missed out on it by losing T20 World Cup finals.

India join West Indies and Australia in dominating ICC tournaments

The India of 2023-25 have enjoyed one of the most dominant periods for any men’s team at ICC tournaments.

West Indies reached the finals of all three ODI World Cups between 1975 and 1983, winning 15 of the 17 matches they played during that time. They clinched the title in 1975 and 1979 without losing a game but were defeated by India twice in 1983, including in the final.

Australia surpassed West Indies by winning three consecutive ODI World Cups from 1999 to 2007. During this time, Australia also secured the 2006 Champions Trophy, with their World Cup titles in 2003 and 2007 coming without losing a match. Over those eight years, Australia won 37 out of 44 matches played at ICC tournaments, suffering only six losses.

Ricky Ponting, who captained Australia in five ICC competitions during those eight years, achieved a remarkable win-loss record of 30-3, while winning two World Cups and a Champions Trophy.

England also claimed two ICC titles in a four-year period, winning the 2019 ODI World Cup and the 2022 T20 World Cup. However, their run was not as dominant, losing six of the 23 matches they played across those tournaments.

Rohit the captain acing big tournaments

Rohit’s record as captain in ODI tournaments featuring five or more teams is even more remarkable; he has 24 wins and just two defeats in 27 matches at these. The Champions Trophy victory marked his third ODI title as captain in a multi-team tournament, adding to two Asia Cup titles in 2018 and 2023.

Only Imran Khan and Ponting, both with four titles, have won more ODI tournaments with five or more teams. Including last year’s T20 World Cup win, Rohit has four multi-team tournament titles across formats, matching Imran, Ponting and Dhoni.

What is making India so dominant?

India’s recent dominance has resulted from exceptional batting and the adaptability of their bowling attacks. Traditionally they have played with at least three pace-bowling options in ODIs but in the slower conditions on offer in Dubai during the Champions Trophy, they went big on spin.

In the 2025 Champions Trophy, two-thirds of the overs bowled by India’s bowlers came from spinners. They accounted for nearly 80% of the total overs across the two matches against New Zealand.

The numbers reflect the skill and effectiveness of the bowling unit Rohit has got. They have often ensured India does not need to chase big scores, and have led the team to many a comfortable victory when they have had substantial totals to defend. Only two captains have had bowlers producing better averages in ODI tournaments – Ponting’s Australia (22.13) and Mahela Jayawardene’s Sri Lanka (23.07).

India’s batters under Rohit, meanwhile, average 46.92 runs at ODI tournaments, twice their bowling average. These batters have a strike rate of 93.46, surpassed only by South Africa under AB de Villiers (96.01) and England under Eoin Morgan (95.11).

Transformation at the top

One of the key changes that Rohit brought in was a switch to a more aggressive batting style. He set the tone by making the most of the field restrictions at the top, something that has ensured India have often remained ahead in challenging chases.

Since February 2022, during Rohit’s first ODI series as full-time captain, India have been scoring at an impressive rate of 5.87 runs per over and averaging 55.15 runs per wicket in the first ten overs. In comparison, the collective run rate of the other five top teams (Australia, England, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa) during the same period is 5.39, with an average of 34.64 runs per wicket.

This means that India have scored nearly five runs more than the other top sides in the first ten overs while averaging 21 runs more per wicket.

A decline in performance was noticeable in the two years following their 2011 World Cup triumph, as they averaged only 29.3 runs in the first ten overs, leading to a transition away from the then senior players.

When Rohit partnered with Shikhar Dhawan in 2013, the team had slower starts but maintained a higher average than the other top sides. India’s scoring rate did improve after Virat Kohli became captain in 2017 but they still lagged behind other teams, with an average of only three runs higher. Read: other teams had found ways to score more efficiently.

Rohit struck at only 69.87 in the first ten overs in ODIs before taking up the captaincy, and averaged only 36.94. But over the last three years, he has scored 1292 runs in this phase, averaging 61.52 and scoring at a rate of 119.62.

In comparison, the other India batters in these past three years have scored at a rate of 80.93 in this phase. Shubman Gill’s contribution has been notable – he has scored 1126 runs, with a strike rate of 94.22 and an average of 93.83. His ability to anchor innings while Rohit charges has been crucial to India’s success at the start of their innings.

A settled batting unit

India’s recent success in ODI tournaments can also be attributed to their stable batting line-up – a top four of Rohit, Gill, Kohli and Shreyas Iyer, followed by KL Rahul batting at either No. 5 or No. 6.

These five batters have scored 13 centuries in those matches, with Kohli contributing six of them.

Improvising in the late 30s

Rohit became India’s all-format captain just months before turning 35. At the age of 37 years and 60 days, he led India to victory in the T20 World Cup. He was 37 years and 313 days old when India secured the Champions Trophy title win over New Zealand.

The only captain older than Rohit to win an ICC trophy is Imran, who was 39 years and 172 days old when he led Pakistan to victory in the 1992 ODI World Cup. Brian Lara is the only other captain to win an ICC trophy after turning 35, having led West Indies to the Champions Trophy title in 2004 at 35 years and 146 days.

The age factor did not affect Rohit’s batting either; if anything, he has become better with age.

Since the beginning of 2023, Rohit has a batting rating of 60.93 according to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats, the highest for any batter with over 1000 runs in this period in completed ODIs. Heinrich Klaasen follows with 59.82, while Gill is third with 57.90. Rohit has recorded at least 50 batting rating points in 20 of his 36 innings in this period – that’s at least 50 batting rating points in 55.56% of his innings, the highest among the 72 players to have batted at least 20 times.

Nineteen batters have scored 1500-plus runs in men’s ODIs both before and after turning 35. Of these, Rohit’s strike-rate ratio after turning 35 versus before is 1.32, the best among the lot. Chris Gayle is a close second with a ratio of 1.29, having had a strike rate of 108.65 after turning 35, compared to 84.05 before.

While the change in his batting approach has resulted in fewer big scores and lower conversion rates – he has recorded only three centuries in 42 innings – his overall consistency has remained intact. His batting average was 48.60 before he turned 35, one run lower than in the last three years.