Rohit Sharma commits to SMAT return after 15 years; to play knockouts for Mumbai post India vs South Africa ODI series

Amid the BCCI's push for all centrally contracted players to play in domestic cricket, former India captain Rohit Sharma conformed his availability for Mumbai to play in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Tournament. The decision came in the middle of the ongoing India vs South Africa ODI series, an despite the fact Rohit has retired from T20Is last year.

According to a report in TOI, Rohit has informed the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) about his availability in the knockout stages, and will be travelling to Indore (venue for Mumbai's matches) directly after the third ODI against South Africa on December 6 in Visakhapatnam.

Mumbai, have won all their league matches and finished on top of the league table. The SMAT knockout stages will be held between December 12 and 18. "He has expressed his desire to play for Mumbai in the knockouts of SMAT," a MCA official told the national daily.

The last time Rohit played a match for SMAT was in 2011/12 season. This will be Rohit's second domestic match in 2025 after he played a Ranji Trophy match against Jammu and Kashmir in January.

Having already retired from T20Is and Tests, Rohit only plays one format. With the 2027 ODI World Cup in mind, there has been concerns over his lack of game time in international cricket in the lead up to the grand event. Hence the the Indian team management wants both Rohit and Virat Kohli to play domestic cricket to remain match fit all the time.

Like Rohit, Kohli too plays only one format after quitting Tests and T20Is. Notably, both have committed to play Vijay Hazare Trophy, India's premier domestic ODI competition. Rohit opted to play for SMAT too.

Why is Rohit play in SMAT despite