 "Mumbai Indians star Rohit Sharma thanked Kolkata Knight Riders assistant coach Abhishek Nayar after his match-winning knock against Chennai Super Kings. Image credit: AP/KKR")
Rohit Sharma bounced back after a string of low scores in the 2025 Indian Premier League , starring in Mumbai Indians’ nine-wicket thrashing of arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday. Rohit smashed an unbeaten 76 off 45 deliveries and shared an unbroken 114-run stand with Suryakumar Yadav (68 not out) as MI chased down the below-par 177-run target with 26 deliveries to spare .
This was after the ‘Hitman’ had collected just 82 runs in his first six outings at an average under 14 this season, in which he has played as an ‘Impact Sub’.
Rohit said keeping things simple and having a “clear mindset” helped him shake off the rust in the evening fixture of the Sunday double-header and convert an attacking start into his first half-century of the season.
Rohit also made special mention of Abhishek Nayar, who had served as assistant coach in the Gautam Gambhir-led India support staff for nearly a year and rejoined Kolkata Knight Riders over the weekend after getting axed from the role by the BCCI.
“Thanks bro @ABHISHEKNAYAR,” Rohit posted on Instagram Stories on Monday.
Rohit continues training with Abhishek after victorious Champions Trophy campaign
According to Cricbuzz, Rohit has been collaborating with Nayar before as well as during the ongoing IPL season, long after captaining India to victory in the Champions Trophy – which was Nayar’s final assignment with the Indian team before his exit.
The ‘Hitman’ was spotted training with Nayar at Mumbai Cricket Association’s (MCA) facility at the Bandra-Kurla Complex in the ‘Maximum City’ ahead of MI’s home game against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday. Rohit had smashed 26 runs in 15 deliveries before chipping a full toss from Pat Cummins straight to Travis Head.
Impact Shorts
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Rohit would get MI off to another flying start against CSK three days later, and this time managed to convert it into a match-winning score – his first in the shortest format since retiring from Twenty20 Internationals last year.
And it’s not just Rohit who has been all-praise for Nayar’s coaching skills; senior wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul too credited the former seam-bowling all-rounder after a match-winning 77 off 51 balls against CSK at Chepauk.
“Big shout out to Abhishek Nayar. I’ve worked a lot with him ever since he’s come into the Indian team. We’ve spent hours and hours together talking about my white ball game and how I can be better. We’ve worked hours and hours together in Bombay, and I think somewhere I’ve found the fun in playing white-ball cricket,” Rahul had said after the knock.
The report adds that Rohit intends to continue working with Nayar in his goal of playing till the 2027 ODI World Cup.
However, it remains to be seen if the two can collaborate in the remainder of the season now that Nayar is back at KKR as their assistant coach, with Mumbai and Kolkata having already played their only game in the league phase earlier this month.