‘Not going to put Rohit Sharma & Virat Kohli on trial after every ODI’ – Agarkar on World Cup plans

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli hadn't played for India since March and their last competitive match came in June.

Chairman of Selectors Ajit Agarkar has been under fire ever since he stated that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are ‘non-committal’ about playing in the 2027 ODI World Cup. The modern greats don’t just have a massive fan base, but even current and former cricketers fawn over them.

That’s why Agarkar’s statement regarding Rohit and Kohli irked some. He was asked about their future once again, just two days before the India vs Australia ODI series began in Perth. But the former Indian all-rounder has maintained that stance.

Rohit-Kohli have nothing to prove

He simply stated that one can’t predict the future. It’s not just about Rohit or Kohli, but maybe some younger players don’t make the cut when it comes to the ODI World Cup. Agarkar reassured everyone that the two former Indian captains won’t be judged after each match and that they’ll be treated with the respect they have earned in the last decade and a half.

“They’ve been incredible players for a long period of time. But, in two years’ time, we don’t know what the situation will be. Why just them? Some other younger players might not play.

I mean, that’ll be a bit silly, won’t it? (On them proving their spot after each other) When the guys have—one averages over 50 and one averages close to 50. You’re not going to put them on trial after every game,” Agarkar said at the NDTV World Summit 2025.

Agarkar highlighted that Rohit and Kohli only play one format now and haven’t played any international cricket in over six months. Naturally, all of this will be taken into account. He reassured everyone that their performance in the India vs Australia ODI series won’t determine their future in two years’ time.

“2027 is a long way away, and both of them play only one format. They are playing (international) cricket after March 9. They haven’t had a lot of cricket. Once they start playing, you assess. They’ve achieved all they had to achieve, not just in winning trophies but also runs.

It’s not that if both of them don’t get runs this series, that will be the reason they won’t be there, or if they get three hundreds, that is the reason they will play the ODI World Cup 2027. 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,” Agarkar added.