Will Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma Play Domestic Cricket? What We Know So Far

After winning the third ODI match against Australia in Sydney, India's star players Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will again not be seen in International cricket, at least for one month. The question on every Indian fan's mind now - Will Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma play domestic cricket again? The 2027 World Cup is still a long way off, so it's important for them to play domestic cricket.

From the ODI series against Australia, a few things are clear: the Indian Team needs Kohli and Rohit's experience, and both the star players need to play more cricket to remain in touch. However, they also need to work on their fitness, as in the next World Cup, Virat will be 39 and Rohit 40.

Why Domestic Cricket?

The discussion around Kohli and Rohit's domestic cricket plans started a while earlier when they retired from test cricket. Experts say that it helps maintain match fitness and form since you are playing a single format, so matches will be very few, and there might even be a month's gap. 

This is truly seen in the Australia series, Virat Kohli got two back-to-back ducks in the first two ODIs in Perth and Adelaide, whereas Rohit Sharma got out at 8 in Perth and was seen struggling in Adelaide as well.

But in the third ODI in Sydney, both the legends gave answers to all critics who were questioning their presence in India's ODI Team. Rohit Sharma played an exceptional knock of 121* off 125 balls. He was in good control and played the game according to the situation.

Virat Kohli made 74* off 81 balls. He was struggling in the first 10-15 balls, but after that, he looked back in touch and played some really good shots. These innings of both stars were needed to put a full stop to their willingness to participate in the 2027 World Cup.

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But now the next ODI series is against South Africa, which is all set to start from November 30, 2025, and it will be a one-month gap for Virat and Rohit. This thing will keep happening till the 2027 World Cup, so they need to play regular cricket to remain in touch and form.

The Vijay Hazare trophy will be played from December 24, 2025, to January 18, 2026. Both players will be looking to participate in the tournament; they have played domestic matches for Mumbai and Delhi in the past. 

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