‘You can’t take 1-2 games’: Blunt warning from former cricketer Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli

India’s Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli (ANI Photo) The debate surrounding the ODI futures of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma refuses to die down despite both continuing to deliver for India. While neither head coach Gautam Gambhir nor chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar have publicly committed to the 2027 FIFA World Cup, they are keeping speculation about their futures alive.India’s recent 1-2 ODI series defeat against England only added fuel to the conversation. Rohit silenced the critics with a match-winning century in the series finale and registered his 34th ODI hundred amid speculation that the Lord’s fixture could be his last international appearance. Meanwhile, Kohli chipped in with two half-centuries during the series after both the senior batsmen struggled in the opening match.Former India wicket-keeper batsman Deep Dasgupta believes there is no need to question Rohit and Kohli’s place in the side, but stressed that both must make an immediate impact whenever the series starts, rather than taking time to settle.“That has to be a conversation with everyone, not just them (Kohli and Rohit), that they have to start the series well and go for it. That’s the challenge. You can’t take one or two games to get into the groove. But that’s where the support team comes in and has a conversation with the players by creating an environment that gets the best out of everyone,” Deep Dasgupta said on his YouTube channel.Dasgupta insisted that the standards applied to the two heroes should remain unchanged despite the growing scrutiny surrounding their careers.“There’s no need to talk to them about their place in the team. It wasn’t like four years ago they had to remind them before every series that they were going to be in the team. They knew they were going to be in the team based on their performances. So how is that going to change now? It’s not going to change and it shouldn’t change,” he added.

Why Rohit and Kohli’s future remains in focus

Questions over Rohit and Kohli’s future have repeatedly cropped up since both retired from Test cricket last year, leaving ODIs as their only international format. Ahead of the Lord’s ODI against England, reports suggested that the selection committee was considering moving on from Rohit ahead of the 2027 World Cup to make way for Yashasvi Jaiswal.However, the BCCI management dismissed reports that the encounter with Lord will be Rohit’s last international appearance.Dasgupta believes the constant speculation is largely due to the pair now featuring in just one international format, making every ODI performance subject to greater scrutiny.“This discussion about their future is getting exaggerated because they only play one format. When you play multiple formats, if you fail in one but score in the other, the failure is forgotten. That’s a challenge for these two that cannot be denied. People will remember what they did last time in this format because they only play one format. But the conversation with them should be the same as it was three years ago,” he added.