Gautam Gambhir on Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma retirement: ‘Can’t say how much cricket is left in them’

Newly appointed India head coach Gautam Gambhir has addressed the hot topic of what will happen to Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli under the new leadership. Notably, both Kohli and Rohit had decided to retire from T20 cricket after the Men in Blue won the 20-over World Cup last month.

Speaking at the press conference ahead of the Sri Lanka series, Gambhir said, “I think they've shown what they can deliver on the big stage whether it was the T20 World Cup and in the 50 over World cup as well. I think both those guys have got a lot of cricket left in them and more importantly with the Champions Trophy and a big tour of Australia, obviously they would be motivated enough and then hopefully they can keep their fitness till the 2027 World Cup as well. This is a very personal decision.”

Gambhir said that both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have a lot of cricket left in them and Team India would like to see them play for as long as possible.

"I can't say how much cricket is left in them. Ultimately it's up to them as well. It's up to the players how much can they contribute to the team's success because ultimately it's the team that is important. But looking at what Virat and Rohit can deliver, I think they still have a lot of cricket and they're still world-class players and obviously any team would want to have both of them for as long as possible." Gambhir added

Notably, both Rohit and Virat had quit the shortest format of the game following the T20 World Cup triumph last month. Since then, there has been a lot of talk about their future in ODI and Test cricket. Coach Gautam Gambhir, however, has put an end to that debate by suggesting that both players have a chance of making it to the 2027 ODI World Cup.