Kohli, Rohit's India future to be decided by IPL 2026 end: Coach Gambhir makes big revelation

India head coach Gautam Gambhir has revealed that the blueprint for the 2027 Cricket World Cup will be prepared by the end of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL). That means that we will have clarity over the place of veteran batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the 50-over set-up.

IPL is scheduled to start towards the end of March and will go on till end of May. After that, India will start preparing for the 2027 World Cup. With Kohli and Rohit having retired from the other two international formats, all eyes are on whether they will be able to play the 2027 showpiece tournament or not.

‘Planning for 2027 World Cup to start after IPL’

The 2027 Cricket World Cup takes place across South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia in the second half of the year. With ODIs not being played as much as they were about half-a-decade ago, the team management will start preparing for the tournament early, Gambhir revealed.

“The planning for the 2027 World Cup will start after the IPL. There are 25 to 30 ODIs between IPL 2026 and the World Cup. This format is not played a lot these days. The earlier we start planning, the better it will be for us,” he told India Today.

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“South Africa is not an easy place to play cricket. We have to figure out combinations and identify the players who are suited to the conditions. The selectors and the coaches will do that. By the time IPL 2026 ends, India will have a blueprint for the ODI World Cup 2027,” Gambhir added.

There have been reports that Gambhir's relation with the senior duo of Rohit and Virat is not good but the head coach said if things were not right, it would be known in the media.

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“My philosophy is simple - if the majority of the team members are not happy with me, there is no point in me staying in that dressing room. If the majority is happy, I am doing the right job. If you report genuinely, you will know how the atmosphere of the team is. The Indian team’s atmosphere can’t stay hidden from anybody because there is so much scrutiny, limelight and media attention,” the coach said.

Virat has been in stunning 50-over form with the veteran hitting a string of centuries in last year’s series against South Africa and New Zealand. Rohit too has been in good form with consistent runs. Both the batters are aiming to play the 2027 Cricket World Cup but with the competition rising, any drop in form could hit their chances.