Rohit Sharma turns 33: Hitman opens up about 'embarrassing' first meeting with wife Ritika

Indian cricketer Rohit Sharma celebrated his 33rd birthday on Thursday. He is one of the most destructive batsmen of modern times. The right-handed batsman, who broke into the Indian team a decade ago, was cited as one of the brightest talents of Indian cricket. However, the initial few years of his cricketing career were marred by inconsistent performances, which kept him away from becoming the mainstay of the Indian batting line up.

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Rohit Sharma birthday: 'Hitman' opens up about his first meeting with wife Ritika Sajdeh

However, his fortunes changed since his promotion as an opener in India's victorious 2013 Champions Trophy campaign. Rohit Sharma is now a limited-overs veteran and one of India’s most reliable batsmen, especially in ODIs and T20Is. Rohit Sharma is the only batsman to have three ODI double centuries in his bank which is no mean feat.

Rohit Sharma married his manager Ritika Sajdeh in 2015 after dating her for 6 years. The 33-year-old revealed about his first meeting with Ritika Sajdeh and how he was left red-faced.

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While speaking on a talk show Breakfast with Champions, Rohit Sharma said that it's a funny story and added that he was a little embarrassed to talk about it. Rohit Sharma further said that it was at an advertisement shoot that he was doing and he was 20 back then. He reached the location of the shoot where Yuvraj Singh and Irfan Pathan were also present at the shoot. Ritika Sajdeh is a business manager for many sportspersons, which also included Rohit himself later on.

Rohit Sharma comically added that he went to meet Yuvraj in his trailer to oblige the senior player. After greeting Yuvraj, he saw Ritika Sajdeh sitting next to him and before he could start any conversation, Yuvraj Singh warned him to stay away as she was like his 'sister'. This caught Rohit Sharma off guard as he said he was there just to meet him. So for the entire shoot, he was furious at Ritika Sajdeh and was thinking of her arrogance.

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Rohit Sharma went on to say that after his shot was done successfully, the director came up to him and told him that he needs to reshoot the scene as the mic was switched off. He added that he went downstairs and Ritika Sajdeh was standing there when she asked him politely if he needed any help. He also said after that they became very close friends and she started managing him. Rohit Sharma added that they felt that there was an instant connection as they hit it off from word go.

Here is the episode - 

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IMAGE COURTESY: ICC TWITTER