Rohit Sharma made history in Dharamshala on Saturday, June 13, 2026, when he became the oldest player to represent India in a One-Day International. The 39-year-and-44-day-old opener took the field at the start of India’s reduced 25-over first ODI against Afghanistan, surpassing a long-standing mark and drawing headlines on the opening day of the bilateral series. India, led by Shubman Gill, won the toss and elected to field after persistent rain delayed and shortened the match.
The milestone ended a record that had stood for nearly 37 years. The previous oldest Indian to play an ODI was Mohinder Amarnath, who was 39 years and 36 days old on October 30, 1989, when he played his final ODI in Mumbai against the West Indies. Rohit’s selection followed doubts about his fitness after the 2026 IPL with the Mumbai Indians, but he recovered in time to reclaim a place in the national side for this series.
The match that resumed after roughly a four-hour rain break also saw two players make their international debuts: pace bowler Gurnoor Brar and all-rounder Harsh Dubey. In a tactical reshuffle, India promoted Ishan Kishan to bat at number three in place of Yashasvi Jaiswal. Notably, this is the first bilateral ODI series between India and Afghanistan; previously the teams had only met in multi-team events such as the World Cup and Asia Cup.
The three-match series continues with the second ODI scheduled for Wednesday in Lucknow and the finale set for June 20, 2026, in Chennai. Historically, in the four prior ODI meetings between the sides India won three and one match ended in a tie. Recent form has been mixed: in the last five ODIs India suffered three defeats, while Afghanistan has enjoyed a run of four consecutive wins. By contrast, India dominated Afghanistan in the lone Test last week, winning by an innings and 300 runs inside three days.
India’s squad for the series is missing injured players Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya, while Jasprit Bumrah has been rested. Dharamshala’s pitch is expected to favor pace bowlers, and the lingering rain threat could give a later-batting side some advantage-factors that could shape how the remainder of this inaugural bilateral ODI contest unfolds.
Original Source: https://assam.nenow.in/rohit-sharma-oldest-india-odi-player-record-set-at-39-years-and-44-days-surpassing-mohinder-amarnaths-37-year-old-milestone/
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Publish Date: 2026-06-13 19:26:00
