Will India’s two cricket superstars, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, be able to play in the 2027 ODI World Cup or not, this question is now roaming in the mind of every cricket fan.
Former Indian cricketer Atul Wassan has recently made a big statement, in which he said that it will be ‘extremely difficult’ for these two giants to make it to the 2027 World Cup.
Actually Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli recently said goodbye to Test cricket after a poor performance in the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Also, after winning the 2024 T20 World Cup, both of them also retired from T20 International.
Now both of them will be seen playing only ODI cricket. But the question is, will both of them be able to save their place in ODIs till 2027?
Vasan said in OTT play’s show Balls and Banter
Atul Vasan expressed his opinion openly in OTTplay’s show Balls and Banter. He said that ODI cricket is no longer played as much as T20 or Test. In such a situation, it will be a big challenge for Rohit and Virat to maintain fitness.
Vasan said in a funny way, “It is not easy to stay fit just by playing IPL, which is only two months in a year.”
Vasan also said that big players like Rohit and Virat do not show much interest in playing against small teams like Bangladesh or Zimbabwe.
They need big challenges that motivate them. But due to the low number of ODI matches and long gap, questions are being raised on their form and fitness.
Further Vasan also told that now the fans have liked the pace of T20 cricket so much that the fun of ODI cricket is only in big tournaments like the World Cup.
He laughed and said, “Watching ODIs is like watching paint dry.” He said that even as a commentator he finds it difficult to keep the audience engaged in ODI matches.
What’s next?
India will play only 27 ODIs by 2026, and Rohit-Virat will have to work hard due to their age (Rohit will be 40 and Kohli 38 in 2027) and fewer matches.
After IPL 2025, both of them can play in the three-match ODI series against Australia in October. But to maintain form and fitness in the long break, they may have to play domestic cricket as well.
