Gautam Gambhir, Ajit Agarkar Given 'Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma Warning' For ODI World Cup Plans

Despite retirement from Tests and T20Is, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have continued going strong in the ODI format. While Rohit was named the Player of the Series on the tour of Australia, Kohli won the same award against South Africa. Despite their exemplary performances in the 50-over format and past record, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has refused to confirm if they are part of the ODI World Cup 2027 plans. However, former national selector Devang Gandhi has warned the board against overlooking the veteran duo for the showpiece event in South Africa.

Be it the selection committee chief Ajit Agarkar or India head coach Gautam Gambhir, both have maintained that the ODI World Cup is too far for them to clarify what the future holds for Rohit and Kohli. But, Gandhi feels the management should build their team around the duo.

"As long as Kohli and Rohit are around, the planning has to revolve around them. The management must stick to a pool of not more than 20 players now. Leading up to the 2019 World Cup, no one was given enough chances to settle down at No. 4. When the top order imploded in the semifinal, no one was ready. The same happened in the 2023 World Cup, when the team management was forced to play Suryakumar Yadav, who didn't have a good ODI record," Gandhi told the Times of India.

Gandhi also feels players like Rishabh Pant should be given more opportunities in order to prepare for scenarios where the first-choice players aren't available due to injuries.

"Someone like Rishabh Pant has not played a match. If KL Rahul suffers an injury during the World Cup, Pant or any other wicketkeeper must have enough game time. In 2019, Pant came in with the experience of just five ODIs. If there is a scope to play both Pant and Rahul together, there's no harm in it. And if they have identified Gaikwad as Iyer's backup, then it should remain that way," he added.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team Virat Kohli Rohit Sharma Gautam Gambhir Ajit Agarkar Devang Jayant Gandhi BCCI Cricket