Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma had once been at the epicentre of any cricketing speculation barely a week after the India-England Test series had ended. The Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy was played on its last day last Monday, but the centre of attention has since shifted towards the Ro-Ko duo, which has raised questions on the future of the duo at the national set-up.
It has been suggested that the following tour to Australia in October might well be the final time the two veterans play an ODI in Indian colours. Rohit will be 40 by the time the 2027 World Cup comes along, and Virat Kohli will have turned 39, and hopes of them still performing at that point are dwindling. Some sources have claimed that unless the two are willing to take part in a subsequent Vijay Hazare Trophy, the ODIs in Australia could turn out to be their last hurrah in India colours. The pair have already retired in Tests and T20Is, and they still have the ODI format and the IPL to play. They should take all the opportunities that come by, the experts believe, to maintain fitness and matches.
But contradictory reports say that official talks of their future plans have not taken place so far and that any decision will not be taken before the next T20 World Cup- which is the only concern of BCCI right now.
The controversy picked up pace when Sourav Ganguly, the former captain of India and president of the BCCI, shared his opinion on the same. To this comes the opinion of former national selector of BCCI Devang Gandhi, who now says that the board has to start thinking in terms of a post-Kohli post-Rohit era.
Gandhi reckons that there is a new generation of talent coming through in the form of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, and Sai Sudharsan, who have already demonstrated their ability to be multifaceted in terms of the formats that they can be adapted and employed. He emphasised that it is necessary to develop young players as it will be crucial to the long-term success of the team, even if it requires giving up two of the greatest Indian cricketers of the past decade.
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