 "While Ravi Shastri felt Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's future in the Indian team would depend on their performance and fitness, he maintained that their experience would be invaluable on the field. Image: AP/Reuters")
Speculation over Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s future in international cricket has been a key topic of discussion in Indian cricketing circles ever since the former was stripped of ODI captaincy, with the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee handing the responsibility to Test captain Shubman Gill .
Both Rohit and Kohli have been included for the ODI leg of the upcoming tour of Australia, where Gill will be making his debut as India white-ball captain, and will be returning to international cricket for the first time since the Champions Trophy triumph in March.
The two batting stalwarts had retired from Twenty20 Internationals last year, and had also quit Test cricket in May, making ODI the only format they’re currently active in. Ro-Ko will no doubt be hoping to sign off from international cricket for good by helping India win the 2027 ICC World Cup in South Africa.
Australia tour crucial to Ro-Ko’s ODI future, feels Shastri
Whether they will remain in captain Gill and head coach Gautam Gambhir’s plans for the World Cup, however, is something that remains to be seen. And when quizzed on the same, former India captain Ravi Shastri – who shared a close working relationship with Kohli during his reign as head coach – felt that it will ultimately depend on their “fitness, hunger and form”.
“They’re part of the mix. It depends on their fitness, their hunger and, of course, form. So, I think this series is very important to see how they go. They themselves will know by the end of this series how they feel and then it’s their call,” Shastri was quoted by cricket.com.au as saying.
“(It’s) the same thing with Steve Smith, who retired from ODIs in March, from Australia’s point of view. At that age, you’ve got to enjoy it, and you still have to have the hunger,” he added.
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More Shorts‘No substitute for experience’
Both Rohit and Kohli were in fine touch with the bat in the Champions Trophy, in which the former led the Men in Blue to a second ICC title in as many years. While Kohli had scored a match-winning century against Pakistan and a crucial 84 in the semi-final against Australia, Rohit struck a match-winning 76 in the final to earn the Player of the Match award.
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And for Shastri, who was India’s head coach from 2017 to 2021, there is no substitute for experience when it comes to big matches.
“But there’s no substitute for experience when it comes to the big games, as we saw in the Champions Trophy. Come the big games, and the big boys step up,” the cricketer-turned-commentator added.