File photo of Rohit Sharma© Getty
Former Indian cricket team spinner R Ashwin questioned the timing of the debate over Rohit Sharma’s future amid speculation that the Lord’s ODI match against England can be his last for the national team. Ashwin said that if the selectors wanted to move on from the veteran duo of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli ahead of the ODI World Cup 2027, they should have communicated their decision much earlier. Reports claimed that Rohit was out of BCCI’s plans for the World Cup but the board clarified that the match on Sunday will not be Rohit’s last. Ashwin pointed out that India still needs the experience of Rohit and Virat for the upcoming tour of South Africa and urged the BCCI to not let any kind of uncertainty prevail.
“I am thinking we are going to South Africa in September and October. Do we need Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma? If you ask me, I will say we need that experience. I know Yashasvi Jaiswal is pushing hard from behind, but if you ever felt as a selector, coach or captain that we don’t want these players in the 2027 World Cup, then you could have communicated that at the end of the Champions Trophy,” Ashwin said on YouTube.
Ashwin went on to say that honest communication is extremely important when it comes to dealing with senior players.
“If you go to a player and tell him that we want to move on from you, no player will like that. Even when the coach came and communicated with me in Australia that they wanted to look past me, I accepted it. One bad series can happen to any player, but you have to communicate with the player.”
Ashwin also did not appreciate the timing of the entire discussion considering the World Cup is less than a year away.
“Beyond all the speculation, Rohit and Virat have been performing. If you really wanted to make such a transition, why has this discussion come only now, in August 2026, when there are only 10 to 12 months left before the Cricket World Cup?”
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