New Delhi: Head Coach of India Gautam Gambhir Los Angeles has expressed a strong desire to live through the Olympics. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar wants to stay till 2027 ODI World Cup. T20I captain Surya Kumar Yadav has set his sights on 2028 and ODI captain Shibman Gill has locked down the ultimate target for South Africa. I every important person Indian cricket The focus is on what’s next but the biggest irony is that two of the country’s biggest superstars still have to deal with irresponsible behavior.Virat Kohli And Rohit Sharma – two former ODI captains and the best cricketers to ever play the game – are yet to garner public support for next year’s showpiece in South Africa. “There’s still time,” “The World Cup is almost two years away,” “We want to focus on the present.” Over time, the rhetoric changed, but the sentiment remained the same.
The only comforting words came from the Indian camp in October 2025 when India’s newly appointed Test and ODI captain, Gayle, backed the two stalwarts. “Absolutely,” Gill said, when asked if he saw Rohit and Kohli playing a major role in the World Cup in ODIs. “The experience they both have (a lot), and there are very few players who can match the number of matches they have won for India,” he added.Less than a week later, Coach Gambhir urged everyone to “stay in the moment.”“Look, the 50-over World Cup is still two-and-a-half years away, and I think it’s very important to stay in the present,” he said at a press conference after India’s 2-0 Test series win over the West Indies. “It’s very important, obviously, they’re quality players, they’re coming back, they’re going to have a handful of experience in Australia as well. Hopefully both of these guys will have a successful tour, and more importantly, as a team, we will have a successful series.”
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli (Screen Grab)
Since then, Virat and Rohit have played series against Australia, South Africa and New Zealand, and have also featured in a few List A matches for their respective states in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. While Rohit has lost a lot of weight – “half of it”, according to Brendon McCullum – Virat has gained a lot of will.Virat, in particular, has turned into beast mode. In his last 10 fifty-over outings, he scored four centuries and as many half-centuries. Rohit had a quiet display against New Zealand but also looked dangerous in the series against South Africa and Australia. Both the right-handers, who have been the backbone of the Indian team for the past two decades, are in the final stages of their careers but continue to fight for survival, chasing the unfinished business of three years ago.India face a packed ODI calendar ahead of next year’s World Cup, and it is important that someone BCCI Called both Rohit and Virat to discuss their plans. The board has plans, not the players’ plans. The players have their target locked down and the onus is now on the Indian cricket board to navigate the situation.
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma (AP Photo)
A dagger of insecurity hanging over their head is not ideal for any Indian dressing room, and it is no wonder that the ODI set-up is one of the most tense. There are strong rumblings that some senior players are limiting their interaction with the coach and their interaction with the chief selector to formal pleasantries.The head coach, during one of his many media appearances since winning the T20 World Cup, insisted that planning for the ODI World Cup will begin sometime during the IPL but that discussions are needed before the blueprint is finalised. Not just talk but clear communication will tell if Virat and Rohit fit into the World Cup plans or not.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli (Photo Credit: BCCI)
While it’s ridiculous that a conversation of this nature, involving two white-haired giants, is even needed, the indirect messaging through press conferences and the growing chatter on social media timelines is doing all but making the dressing room ideal for an event of this proportion. If cricketers of other formats, who are not on the right side of 30, can look two years ahead. If a chief selector can ask for a shot at unfinished business. And if a head coach can express his desire to continue after a year of his official tenure, then one can expect a clear dialogue between Virat and Rohit. If the men who still feel they can have a real shot without them both, and keep the dressing room at its best, they must be reading the room with supernatural powers.
