Gautam Gambhir breaks silence on Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli's participation in 2027 World Cup

Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir opened up about the chances of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli playing in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2027 in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia. Gambhir stated that it's too early to make any calls, adding that the marquee tournament is still over two years away.

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have retired from the Test and T20I formats. They will be available only for One-Day Internationals (ODIs). Following the disappointment of India's campaign in the 2023 ODI World Cup at home, the veteran duo will hope to secure the trophy in the next edition of the tournament.

It's Still a Long Way Away - Gautam Gambhir on Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli's Future

In an interview with CNN-News18, Gautam Gambhir said that he is not thinking about Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's participation in the ODI World Cup. He added that the immediate focus is on the T20 World Cup, which will be held in India in February-March, following the England tour.

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“Look, it’s still a long way away," Gautam Gambhir told CNN-News18 in an exclusive interview.

“We still have a T20 World Cup before that, and that is again a huge tournament that is going to happen in India, which is in February-March. So the entire focus at the moment, after England, will be on the T20 World Cup, and November-December 2027 is still two-and-a-half years away."

“And I’ve always said one thing – if you keep performing, age is just a number," he added.

It’s a Very Individual Decision - Gautam Gambhir on Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli's Retirement

When asked about Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma’s decision to retire from Test cricket, Gautam Gambhir stated that such decisions are very individual. Gambhir said that coaches, selectors, or anyone else does not have the authority to dictate when a player should retire.

"I think, when you start the game and when you want to finish, it’s a very individual decision. No one has the right. Be it the coach, the selector, be it anyone in this country has any right to tell someone when to retire and when not to retire. So it comes from within," Gambhir stated.

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli Struggled in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli decided to retire from Test cricket ahead of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 cycle. Both players faced difficulties in their final Test series during the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar tour of Australia.

Rohit decided to drop himself from the last Test in Sydney after scoring only 31 runs in the previous matches. Kohli, who scored a century in the opening Test at Perth, was consistently challenged by the Australian pace attack throughout the series.

Team India is now searching for a new Test captain and a reliable middle-order batsman. Shubman Gill is reportedly seen as a promising candidate for the captaincy, especially given the workload management concerns around Jasprit Bumrah.

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