"People Say He Is Lazy": Story Of Rohit Sharma's Career-Threatening Injury Revealed By Ex-India Strength And Conditioning Coach

Former India captain Rohit Sharma is doing everything he can to remain in contention for the 2027 ODI World Cup. Rohit, who now plays only ODI cricket for India, will be 40 years old by the time the tournament takes place. Despite continuing to score runs consistently, he is often criticised for his physical appearance, with many trolls questioning his fitness levels. While Rohit's batting performances have remained impressive, concerns about his fitness and presence on the field have frequently been raised since the IPL. Recently, former India strength and conditioning (S&C) coach Soham Desai spoke about how a serious injury once threatened to derail Rohit's career.

Speaking on a podcast with Prashant Desai, Soham dismissed the criticism labelling Rohit as lazy and revealed that a hip injury suffered during the 2017 Champions Trophy significantly affected the Mumbai Indians star's fitness.

"So, people say this Rohit is lazy, mota hai (he's fat), training nahi karta hai (doesn't train). People need to understand this: Rohit Sharma had a career-threatening injury around his hip in 2017 - Champions Trophy jab hum log hare the Pakistan ke samne final, wo wali mein (during the Champions Trophy 2017). So he has got surgeries in his hamstring and his hip flexor and all that," Soham said.

"Around his hip is his weak spot. If he doesn't train for a minimum of two strength sessions in a week, he is a red flag, he is a ticking bomb. And that is the scenario for the last seven to eight years. So if he was not working hard, if he was lazy, he wouldn't have lasted till today," he added.

Soham further explained that, whether in the IPL or international cricket, Rohit must undergo rigorous training to maintain his fitness and continue performing at the highest level.

"Forget about scoring runs, leading (in) IPL, playing twelve months, all formats. For the last seven-eight years, so it has been non-negotiable. Either he has to do that or he has to work in a particular manner on the ground. Without those two, he cannot last and this is not a secret. It is in public domain," he said.

He also compared Rohit's fitness regime with that of Virat Kohli, stating that Rohit needs to focus more on strength-based training to maintain his rhythm and manage the demands of elite-level cricket.

"Rohit is very strength based and very explosive and reactive based. And Virat almost never runs in comparison because he doesn't need to. His (Kohli's) work comes from the ground, and he only does lifting and basic strength work when it comes to training," he said.

"Whereas for him (Rohit), because of his injury history, if he doesn't do strength - particular manner of strength - then he's is going to be creating that gap bigger and bigger. And also, he needs to do his basic running work to keep his hamstring, quads and everything in good rhythm," he added.

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