Virat Kohli Meets Rohit Sharma Amid Retirement Speculation, Video Is Gold. Watch
Over the last decade, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma saw many highs of Indian cricket together. Now, as India embarks on the Australia limited overs tour, starting October 19, the next-gen has truly taken over
The combined fan following of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma can easily surpass that of many teams. Over the last decade, Kohli and Rohit saw many highs of Indian cricket together. Now, as India embarks on the Australia limited overs tour, starting October 19, the next-gen has truly taken over. Rohit is no longer the captain, with Shubman Gill taking over the captaincy mantle in ODI cricket too. Though nothing has been said officially, speculation has it that Rohit and Kohli—both of whom are active only in ODIs—are heading towards retirement.
In the midst of this, Rohit and Kohli departed for Australia on Wednesday, along with other players. Seeing Kohli, who last played international cricket at the Champions Trophy 2025, Rohit bowed down. The star duo then hugged each other.
— BCCI (@BCCI) October 15, 2025
Of familiar faces and special reunions as #TeamIndia depart for the Australia challenge #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/ElV3OtV3Lj
India will play three ODIs and five T20Is Down Under, with both Rohit and Kohli featuring in the ODI leg. The series also serves as an important step in building towards the next ODI World Cup cycle, as the new leadership group begins its journey together.
The series will commence with the 50-over fixtures on Sunday, and the second and third ODIs will be played on October 23 and 25. The five T20Is will be played from October 29 to November 8.
India's unbeaten run in the Champions Trophy, which concluded on a fairytale note with Rohit being named Player of the Match for his rollicking 76 (83) in the final, marked the last appearance of the veteran duo for India. They were expected to return to the Test fold, but both decided to bid adieu to the format more than a month before the England tour.
Considering they pulled the curtains down in T20Is after the fabled win in Barbados, which ended with India returning home with the T20 World Cup title, Rohit and Virat have transformed into one-format players. While Rohit has returned to the format, he will solely feature as a batter.
During the squad announcement earlier this month, chief selector Ajit Agarkar confirmed that he had personally informed Rohit about the selectors' decision to pull the plug on his captaincy stint and hand it to Gill. The decision to pass down the captaincy mantle remains significant in the milieu of the 2027 World Cup in South Africa.
Virat Kohli
Rohit Sharma
India Cricket Team
Australia Cricket Team