Abhishek Nayar Recalls Rohit Sharma’s Fitness Transformation After 2011 World Cup Snub

New Delhi — Former India cricketer and coach Abhishek Nayar has recalled how Rohit Sharma transformed his fitness after being left out of India’s squad for the 2011 ODI World Cup, revealing that the batter entered that year’s Indian Premier League with four-pack abs.

Rohit was disappointed after missing out on selection for India’s victorious 2011 World Cup squad. Nayar, who spent time with Rohit during the early stages of their careers, said the setback prompted him to focus more seriously on fitness.

“We used to argue a lot because I trained heavily, while he relied more on skill. I would tell him, ‘Come on, let’s hit the gym,’ and he would say, ‘Leave it, I will score runs.’ There was nothing wrong with that mindset; fitness culture and the Virat Kohli phenomenon had not yet transformed Indian cricket. The turning point came when a news channel published his photo with a circle drawn around his belly. That image stuck in his mind,” Nayar said on The Great Indian Cricket Show on Doordarshan.

Nayar said Rohit decided to undergo a physical transformation ahead of the 2011 IPL season.

“When the World Cup squad was announced and he was not selected, we were at his house. He expected to be picked. IPL was scheduled to take place after about a month and a half, and he told me, ‘Nayar, whatever it takes in these six weeks, I need to enter the IPL with at least a four-pack.’ People may not believe it, but he entered that IPL with a four-pack. For him, skill was never the issue. It was always about fitness and using that to elevate his skill set,” he added.

Rohit went on to establish himself as one of India’s leading white-ball batters and captains. He helped India win the 2024 T20 World Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy, while also leading the team to a runner-up finish in the 2023 ODI World Cup. (Source: IANS)