Agarkar refuses to put Rohit and Kohli and trial every game, saying that it would be unfair to do so for them.
Agarkar on Rohit and Kohli: ‘Would be a bit silly to put them on trial in every game’.
Will Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma compete in the 2027 World Cup? Ajit Agarkar, the chairman of selectors, has stated that Rohit and Kohli would not be “on trial” during India’s three-match ODI series against Australia, which starts in Perth on Sunday. However, he believes it is too early to make any decisions on that event.
“Look they [Rohit and Kohli] are part of the squad at the moment for Australia,” Agarkar said during NDTV World Summit 2025 on Friday. “In two years’ time, we don’t know what the situation is going to be. So why just them two? It could be some other younger players [who might miss out on the tournament].”
After retiring from Test and T20I cricket, Rohit and Kohli are currently only available for India in ODI matches. Prior to this Australia tour, Rohit also lost his ODI captaincy, as Shubman Gill took over. There is a perception that their inclusion in the ODI team may be dependent on their ability to produce strong performances in each series they play, as both senior players are now in their mid-to-late-30s and have little opportunity to prepare matches in between ODI series.
“That would be a bit silly, isn’t it, when one averages over 50 and the other averages close to 50?” Agarkar said, when this was put to him. “You are not going to put them on trial in every game. But 2027 is a long way away, both of them play one format […] they haven’t had a lot of cricket [in recent months]. Once they start playing, then you assess as you go forward.
“They are not on trial, they’ve achieved all they had to achieve, not just winning trophies but runs [as well], so it’s not that if both of them don’t get runs in this series that will be the reason they won’t be there, or if they get three hundreds, [that will be] the reason they play 2027.
“It’s still a long way away, we’ll see how the team shapes up, but we have some ideas, and as we go along we’ll probably have a better idea of where the team is progressing.”
“Both [Rohit and Kohli] have been stalwarts of Indian cricket. They felt it was a new WTC cycle, and whatever people might think or not think, that is the reality,” Agarkar said. “Both were very aware, perhaps they may not have gone [on] for those two years as Test players for the WTC cycle.
“And look, England was a series where we would have loved some experience, frankly, and the performance was incredible even though we didn’t win, under a young captain, which would have always been difficult. We would have liked some experience, but they had made their decision, and once you have played for as long as they have and they are sure about what decision they want to make, to walk away from a particular format, you’ve got to respect that.”