'It won't be easy': Sourav Ganguly lays out path for Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to play in 2027 ODI World Cup

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma shocked the world recently by announcing their retirements from Test cricket. They had already stepped down from T20 cricket last year after winning the 2024 T20 World Cup. Their recent decisions to retire from red-ball cricket have raised a big question around their availability to play in the 2027 ODI World Cup.

Both Kohli and Rohit are modern-day legends, and fans would love to see them lift the ODI World Cup trophy before they say goodbye to international cricket. The 2027 Cricket World Cup is still more than two years away and by then, Kohli will be 39 and Rohit will turn 40. There are concerns regarding their fitness and match-readiness at that age.

However, since they won’t be playing Tests and T20s anymore, some believe that they can now fully focus on ODIs and prepare themselves just for the 50-over format. That could actually work in their favour, as they will have fewer matches to worry about and can manage their bodies better.

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Ganguly on Kohli-Rohit’s ODI future

But former India captain and ex-BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has a different view. Ganguly believes that if Kohli and Rohit are serious about playing the 2027 ODI World Cup, they will have to stay active in the format for the next two years.

“It won’t be easy. 15 games a year. I’ve got no advice. I think they know the game as much as I do. And they will take a call. But all of us must understand that just like everyone, the game will go away from them and they will go away from the game,” Ganguly told PTI in an interview.

India have at least 27 ODI matches scheduled between now and the next World Cup. Ganguly feels that Kohli and Rohit must stay committed to playing most, if not all, of these matches if they really want to be part of the World Cup squad.

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Both Rohit and Kohli have already had legendary careers. They recently won the ICC Champions Trophy and the T20 World Cup. They qualified for the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup without losing a single game, but lost to Australia in the summit clash. Note, Rohit is still the captain of the Indian ODI team.