"That was my mistake" - Rohit Sharma's childhood coach makes stunning claim on Team India star post ENG vs IND 2025 Tests

Team India stalwart Rohit Sharma’s childhood coach, Dinesh Lad, has shed light on the Mumbai cricketer’s journey from an off-spinner to a batter. Speaking on a YouTube podcast with Gaurav Manglani, Lad shared how he convinced Rohit to enroll in his school.

He also recounted the moment he first saw him bat, calling it the turning point that led him to shift Rohit’s focus from bowling to batting. Lad said:

“I first saw him as a bowler, he was about 12 years old. I saw him playing a match against us. Then I told his uncle (Chacha) to get him admitted to my school. The school started in 1995, and I saw Rohit in 1999. He took admission that year. In the first year, he was in under 14. During practice, I kept making him bowl. Next year, Rohit went to 8th standard and was 14 years old.”

“I felt he should be kept in both the under-16 and under-14 teams. One day, while entering the school, I saw a boy knocking (batting). From outside, I saw the bat was coming very straight and good. I didn’t know it was Rohit at first. When I went inside, I asked him if he was batting. He said yes, sir. Then I gave him some batting in the nets at number six or seven. Before that, I had never given him batting practice. That was my mistake,” he continued.

The coach recalled how Rohit’s performances in the lower order convinced him to promote the youngster up the batting order and focus more on his batting. He said:

“He batted well. In a match, he went in at number seven and scored 40 runs. Very good 40, but unfortunately, we lost the match. When the under-14 practice started after the Harris Shield, the Giles Shield practice was on, I started giving him batting at second and third position in nets. The way he was batting, I felt he had a very good talent for batting. So it was important for him to focus on it. I told him to focus more on batting but keep bowling too.”

Meanwhile, Rohit was last seen in action during IPL 2025, where he scored 418 runs in 15 matches for Mumbai Indians (MI).

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“I will say I didn’t make him” - Coach Dinesh Lad on Rohit Sharma’s journey

In the same video, Dinesh Lad spoke about how Rohit’s performances led him to open the innings. He also explained how practicing on cement pitches, combined with his natural ability, has made Rohit one of the best players of the pull shot in the game. Lad said:

“A thought came to my mind: it would be good to make him open the innings. I called him and said, “Rohit, will you open?” He was very happy and said yes. He went into the match and opened the innings, scoring 140 runs. That batting made me feel that he should focus more on batting.”

“For the pull shot, at that time we only had a cement wicket. What I used to do was take a new ball and bowl from around 16 yards away. I used to bowl a little aggressively from 16 yards. One advantage of the cement wicket was that you could play straight bat shots easily because the ball came evenly on the bat. He got used to that. You see, he was already God-gifted and had all these qualities. I will say I didn’t make him, but we practiced a lot and worked on his skills, and naturally, he became the best puller,” he added.

Since his international debut in 2007, Rohit has represented India in 499 matches across all formats.