Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are not bidding farewell to cricket anytime soon - their Vijay Hazare Trophy appearance - and dominance - proves it.
Back in October 2025, when India’s ODI squad for the Australia series was announced, Ajit Agarkar’s words about the future of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli set off a debate. The chief selector stated that Kohli and Rohit, though picked for the series Down Under, were “non-committal” about the 2027 ODI World Cup, making fans fear the worst. With both having stepped away from T20Is and Tests, the obvious questions followed. How would two senior batters - one 38, the other nearing 37 - maintain motivation? More importantly, how would they retain match fitness and sharpness amid long gaps between games?
The Australia series was coming seven months after Rohit and Kohli’s last international appearance, and close to four months since either had played any form of professional cricket. The apprehensions worsened when Kohli couldn’t buy a run in the first two ODIs, and Rohit looked tentative. The rust was visible, the timing was off, and the debate shifted from planning for 2027 to wondering whether the present was already beginning to slip away.
Then came the third ODI. India had already lost the series, but that barely mattered. Rohit and Kohli, together again at the crease, led a chase that felt familiar. The jam-packed SCG, preparing to bid adieu, was buzzing, the fans were tuned in, and you suddenly realised ODI cricket that had lost its glory would suddenly become the most popular: not for the excitement it brought, but for the two senior players.
Since then, the critics have found newer targets. Against South Africa, Kohli looked like a beast from his peak years: his glorious footwork and timing, and, of course, the quick running. Then Rohit, too, found his rhythm, playing delightful shots and rounding the series off with a fifty in the final game. The batting was important, but it was not the only message being sent.
What lingered longer were the moments away from the run-scoring. Rohit screaming uncharacteristic expletives from the balcony after Kohli’s hundred in the first ODI. The hugs, the shared smiles. For years, unofficial reports of feuds and distance had framed how many viewed their partnership. Now, Kohli - calmer in recent seasons - jumping into the sky with a roar that pierced the zenith, felt like something more than a celebration. It felt like an answer - to the doubt, the speculation, to the quiet assumptions about fading hunger.
Around the same time, the chatter about whether Kohli and Rohit would play the Vijay Hazare Trophy also gained ground. With the new policy that centrally contracted players would need to play domestic cricket to remain in national selection contention, attention inevitably turned to Rohit and Kohli. Would they make themselves available and return to the stage that had started it all for them? Or had they done enough against South Africa, and could now afford the extra time off? Sources confirmed they were not asked to play for their states. But both turned up. Non-committal, and yet present.
On the opening day, both scripted hundreds. Let’s be honest - anything else would have been surprising. But this was never only about how good they are: Kohli made 131 in 101, Rohit did better, making 155 in 94. This was not about how many runs they made - the opposition would rarely have a chance against the duo, in arguably their best format. It was about commitment. Kohli last played in the tournament in 2009-10, having staged a successful Test career between his last appearance and now. Rohit last played in 2017-18.
At this level, experience often fades into complacency. For Kohli and Rohit, it has done the opposite, sharpening intent rather than dulling it. The runs still matter, as they always have, but what defines them now is the refusal to drift away from what they are passionate about. They are still here, still invested, and still committed. And they’re here to stay.
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