BCCI worried about Rohit, Kohli’s match-readiness, summons Gambhir, Agarkar for high-stakes meeting: Report

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli could soon be provided more clarity on their Team India future as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is planning to host a high-stakes meeting between the team management and selectors in Ahmedabad. The meeting is expected to take place after the third ODI between India and South Africa in Visakhapatnam next week.

The BCCI meeting would be attended by top officials, India head coach Gautam Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar, a report in Times of India has claimed. In the meeting, they are expected to discuss Rohit and Kohli’s ODI future and plans for the 2027 ODI World Cup, considering the duo have retired from the Tests and T20Is.

“It is very important that players of Rohit and Kohli’s stature are given clarity about what is expected of them and how the current management views their roles. They can’t just be playing with uncertainty,” a BCCI source told the Times of India.

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BCCI worried about Rohit, Kohli’s match-readiness

The report added that the management and selectors are also in the process of identifying back-up players for Rohit and Kohli in case the need arises. Neither player has indicated that they would retire before the 2027 ODI World Cup.

But there are concerns regarding big gaps in their calendars and their ability to rediscover form from the start of an ODI series. The same issue was felt in Australia, as by the time Kohli and Rohit hit the ground running, India had lost the ODI series. These concerns would be communicated to Rohit and Kohli after the meeting, the BCCI official added.

“They did score runs in the third ODI in Australia. But the series was already lost and the match was set up by the bowlers in the first innings. They looked rusty in the first two matches. One can’t afford that in every series,” the source added.

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Rohit could also be asked to continue batting aggressively as he did in the 2023 ODI World Cup and the Champions Trophy 2025. In the October ODIs in Australia, Rohit had adopted a cautious-first approach, possibly due to a lack of clarity over his role.

“It is expected that he continues to lead by example as a fearless batter at the top of the order. The conditions were tough in Australia but it did look like he was avoiding taking risks. Both are expected to lead the batting to make it easier for the rest of the younger batters around them,” said BCCI sources.

Reportedly, BCCI wanted both Rohit and Kohli to play some cricket in England during the summer before ODIs in Australia, but that did not happen. But they can be asked to play in the Vijay Hazare Trophy next month.