Kohli, Rohit’s ODI future mystery deepens as Aakash Chopra questions absence from India A side

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are not a part of the India A squad, which was announced by the Ajit Agarkar-led senior men’s selection committee on Sunday for the upcoming three-match one-day series against Australia A, scheduled to be played at Kanpur.

While Kohli and Rohit don’t usually feature for India A, it was expected that they might play the matches against Australia for practice before the tour Down Under in October.

No Kohli, Rohit for India A

Having retired from T20Is and Tests, Kohli and Rohit have been out of match practice for a while. They last played competitive cricket in June during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 and their last international outing was in March 2025, during the Champions Trophy.

They are expected to return to the Indian squad for the ODI series against Australia Down Under, which will start from 19 October. However, it would be a tough challenge for 36-year-old Kohli and Rohit, who is 38, to return to international cricket against an elite side without playing in warm-up matches or domestic cricket.

As a result, fans were expecting Rohit and Kohli to play against Australia A in Kanpur, with the matches scheduled for 30 September, 3 and 5 October at Green Park Stadium. Nonetheless, they have not been picked.

This has raised some concerns regarding their future, as there have been speculations that the ODI series in Australia could prove to be their farewell series .

Aakash Chopra questions Kohli, Rohit’s absence

Former India opener Aakash Chopra has even suggested that Kohli and Rohit may have refused to play for India A.

“I am sure the selectors would have asked them and they would have refused. Why am I saying that the selectors would have asked them? Considering the team that has been picked, it has even been tried to include the Asia Cup players, so that some form stays with them and they keep playing competitive games,” Chopra said.

India A squad for the 1st one-day match: Rajat Patidar (Captain), Prabhsimran Singh (WK), Riyan Parag, Ayush Badoni, Suryansh Shedge, Vipraj Nigam, Nishant Sindhu, Gurjapneet Singh, Yudhvir Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Abhishek Porel (WK), Priyansh Arya, Simarjeet Singh.

India A squad for 2nd and 3rd one-day: Tilak Varma (Captain), Rajat Patidar (VC), Abhishek Sharma, Prabhsimran Singh (WK), Riyan Parag, Ayush Badoni, Suryansh Shedge, Vipraj Nigam, Nishant Sindhu, Gurjapneet Singh, Yudhvir Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Abhishek Porel (WK), Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh.