Rohit Sharma’s Career Between Cricket and PR Manipulation

In India, people often say, “Cricket is life; everything else is just a game.” For many fans, cricket is more than just a sport; it’s like a religion, with Sachin Tendulkar worshipped as a god. But is this undying love for cricket genuine, or is it fueled by clever public relations (PR)? Traditionally, PR helps connect brands with people, but nowadays, it’s also used to clean up tarnished images or shape public opinion in new ways.

Rohit Sharma and the PR Debate

Known as the “Hitman” for his extraordinary batting records, including the highest individual ODI score of 264 runs, Rohit enjoys a massive fanbase across continents. He has undoubtedly achieved great success due to his extraordinary performances. His career took off when he scored two double centuries in ODIs and played several match-winning innings. Who can forget his brilliant knock against Australia in the 2024 T20 World Cup semi-final, where he smashed 92 runs off just 41 balls, including 8 sixes and 7 fours, leading India to the final.

However, since that inning, his performance has declined, and his career graph has been steadily dropping, fueling speculation about his retirement from international cricket. Despite this, he clarified in an interview with Star Sports during the last test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (2024-25) that he has no plans to retire by saying I’m not going anywhere, brother, I am here! (Mai Abhi kahin nahi ja raha bhai, Abhi mai idhar hai…)

Rohit Sharma Not Done Yet! 🏏💪

“This isn’t retirement; it’s about form. Life changes every second, and I’m hopeful this will too.” – Rohit Sharma opens up in an exclusive chat, sharing his unwavering passion for the game and the road ahead. 🌟

📹 EXCLUSIVE: @rohitsharma45 sets… pic.twitter.com/ZP5KGHr3oY

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) January 4, 2025

The term “PR” has recently gained significant attention due to the Indian men’s cricket team skipper. Bollywood stars Vidya Balan and Farhan Akhtar posted a few words supporting Rohit Sharma amid his poor BGT 2024-25 performance. Their posts didn’t seem like regular appreciation but rather a clever PR campaign.

Declining Form and Image Management

Rohit Sharma is going through a difficult phase in his cricket career, with poor performances and failed captaincy decisions. Nothing is going well for him on the field. Amidst this, his PR team works overtime to manage his image and maintain his brand value. Recently, Sharma became the center of a public relations controversy after choosing to sit out the final match of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2025.

Bollywood actors Vidya Balan and Farhan Akhtar publicly supported Sharma on social media. Balan shared a post on X (formerly Twitter), praising Sharma’s courage to “take a pause & catch your breath,” while Akhtar posted on Instagram, calling him a “superstar” and expressing hope for his return to the field.

Rohit Sharma, what a SUPERSTAR 🤩!!
To take a pause & catch your breath requires courage … More power to you … Respect 🙌 !! @ImRo45

— vidya balan (@vidya_balan) January 4, 2025

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Farhan Akhtar (@faroutakhtar)

Allegations of a Coordinated Paid PR Campaign

The timing and similarity of Balan and Farhan Akhtar’s posts sparked accusations of a coordinated PR campaign. Some people claimed that his wife, Ritika Sajdeh, also a PR expert, used her industry connections to gain support for Sharma, implying that the celebrities’ posts were part of a strategic effort to protect his public image during declining performance. Although Vidya Balan’s team clarified the tweet, the response was unsatisfactory.

An interesting point is that Vidya Balan does not follow Rohit Sharma on X, and the same goes for Farhan Akhtar, who also doesn’t follow Rohit Sharma on Instagram. Vidya Balan admitted in an interview with a YouTuber that she has no interest in cricket. She only follows four accounts on X, but Rohit Sharma isn’t one of them. Similarly, Farhan Akhtar follows 274 accounts on Instagram, and Rohit Sharma is not among them.

Also, a Reddit user claimed that Balan accidentally posted a screenshot of a WhatsApp text that contained the message on Instagram, leading everyone to think it was PR-driven and led to incessant trolling. These minor discrepancies suggest the influence of paid PR. These minor discrepancies suggest the influence of paid PR.

Looks like Vidya Balan accidentally posted the WhatsApp text that PR teams sends to celebs pic.twitter.com/sEinPUPzZf

— Gaurav (@Melbourne__82) January 4, 2025

Here’s the corrected version of the paragraph, rewritten for clarity and flow, with an active voice and simple vocabulary:

Friendly Relationship with Devendra Pandey

Devendra Pandey, a Mumbai-based journalist and best friend of Rohit Sharma, works as the Deputy Associate Editor for the sports desk at Indian Express. Many of his articles and stories seem to favor Rohit Sharma, often using titles that exaggerate Sharma’s positive attributes. In some pieces, he has even compared Sharma to his counterpart Virat Kohli, portraying Sharma in a more favorable light than Kohli.

Rohit Sharma’s friend since 2005 Devendra Pandey posts an article against Virat Kohli yet again just for him sharing his yo yo test score.
THIS IS HOW PR WORKS. pic.twitter.com/DeX0Wewopd

— Pari (@BluntIndianGal) August 24, 2023

This bias raises important questions. A journalist is expected to remain neutral and focus on presenting facts. However, Pandey’s work lacks critical analysis of Rohit Sharma’s performance. He has also faced allegations of revealing dressing room secrets in his pieces, sparking curiosity about who might be leaking such sensitive information. Despite Sharma’s string of poor performances, Pandey has refrained from criticizing him.

Devendra Pandey the best friend of Rohit Sharma strikes again I wonder how he got dressing room leaks.
The pattern continues.. The politician is evil. https://t.co/S2WUB5PCFF

— Archer (@poserarcher) January 1, 2025

This one-sided portrayal suggests that Pandey may be supporting Sharma in ways that go beyond standard journalistic practices.

Who Handles Rohit Sharma’s PR?

Rise Worldwide, a talent management company handling Rohit Sharma’s PR these days, is associated with Mumbai Indians owner Mukesh Ambani. Before this, Rohit worked with several PR companies. One is Cornerstone, co-owned by Rohit Sharma’s wife, Ritika Sajdeh. This PR agency manages Bollywood stars like Vidya Balan and Varun Dhawan.

The Role of PR in Cricket

MS Dhoni, the former captain of the Indian cricket team, once mentioned in an interview that if you perform well enough, you won’t need PR. While he didn’t directly use the term “PR,” his message was clear.

Another incident occurred with Varun Chakravarthy, who performed exceptionally in IPL 2024 by taking 21 wickets, finishing as the runner-up for the Purple Cap, and playing a key role in helping KKR win the IPL title for the third time. However, right after the IPL 2024, during the Zimbabwe tour led by Shubman Gill, Varun was not included in the squad, not even in the reserves. He expressed his frustration by posting on Instagram, saying, “I wish I had paid a PR agency!!!” This incident highlights just how powerful PR can be.

PR Over Performance

For a player of Rohit Sharma’s stature, resorting to PR stunts seems unnecessary. His career achievements are unparalleled, and his legacy is secure. However, his current form raises the question of whether he should consider retiring from international cricket. At 38, Sharma has played 67 Tests, 265 ODIs, and 159 T20Is, with numerous match-winning performances. Like Dhoni, Sharma could focus on IPL and give young players like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhishek Sharma a chance to shine.

While PR can help manage public perception, it cannot replace on-field performance. Sharma’s fans hope to see him bounce back, but if that doesn’t happen, it might be time for him to step aside gracefully, allowing the next generation to take the reins.

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