The 3rd T20I between India and Afghanistan was a dead rubber before it got underway, hence, the wind of excitement wasn't blowing as strongly as it would normally before the start of an India game. However, all of that changed and that too dramatically as the fixture at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru arguably offered more than the price of the tickets available for getting a sneak peek into the mouth-watering action.
The game unfolded like a Formula 1 race with both the tourists and the hosts trying to pip each other in the race to cross the finish line first.
What happened?
The game went into a Super Over after Gulbadin Naib only managed to get a couple off the last ball when Afghanistan required three to seal the game.
Batting first, Afghanistan posted 16 on the board and the Men in Blue needed 17 to win the contest. Having already scored a hundred while batting in the first innings, Rohit smacked Azmatullah Omarzai for two consecutive sixes and got India to the threshold of a remarkable win.
However, what unfolded next left many bemused. With India needing three runs off two deliveries, Rohit only managed to get a single and then decided to head to the dugout.
Azamtullah bowled an excellent last delivery and denied India the win as the game got pushed into the second Super Over - the first of its kind in international cricketing history.
India had to bat again and set a score on the board for the Ibrahim Zadran-led side to scale down. To everyone's surprise, Rohit came to bat again forcing the ones scratching their heads to pull their hair out.
Rohit's arrival into the middle raised the question of whether he'd retired hurt or retired out in the first instance.
What does the rule say?
The ICC's T20I Playing Conditions have a specific section of rules defined when an incident of Super Over takes precedence.
Clause 22 of Appendix F that deals with Super Over states that, "Any batsman dismissed in any previous Super Over shall be ineligible to bat in any subsequent Super Over".
So, did Rohit retire out or retire hurt?
India's head coach Rahul Dravid had a chat with the broadcasters after the game and suggested that Rohit had retired himself out quite akin to Ravichandran Ashwin, who had retired out in an IPL 2022 game involving Rajasthan Royals and Lucknow Super Giants.
"Taking himself out was Ashwin-level thinking. That's Ash-level thinking," Dravid said when he was asked about the controversy surrounding Rohit.
Did Rohit retire hurt, then?
The ICC's ruling (clause 25.4 Batsman retiring) in regards to a batter's innings in T20Is states that a batter who retires hurt can resume his innings.
Clause 25.4.2 states that, "If a batsman retires because of illness, injury or any other unavoidable cause, that batsman is entitled to resume his innings. If for any reason this does not happen, that batsman is to be recorded as ‘Retired – not out’".
When Rohit came out to bat in the second Super Over it showed that he had most likely walked away during the first Super Over to ensure that a faster runner between the wickets could replace him.
However, he could have still batted as per the laws had the Afghan skipper Ibrahim Zadran given his consent.
Clause 25.4.3 of ICC's ruling on a batsman retiring says, "If a batsman retires for any reason other than as in clause 25.4.2, the innings of that batsman may be resumed only with the consent of the opposing captain. If for any reason his innings is not resumed, that batsman is to be recorded as ‘Retired – out’".
Since the umpires have not yet put out an official word, clarifying whether Rohit retired out or retired hurt, it can't be ascertained why and how he was allowed to resume his innings in the second Super Over.
