"Every game cannot be a test for them" - Former India batter's huge remark on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli playing 2027 World Cup

Former India batter Mohammad Kaif reflected on whether Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli would be seen playing the 2027 ODI World Cup in South Africa. The two batters are currently with the Indian team in Australia for the ongoing ODI series.

In the first game, both batters failed to leave a mark. Rohit scored eight runs while Kohli could not even open his account. Kaif remarked that Rohit did not appear in his zone and was not as involved in the game during the first match. He reckoned that both players may not like having to keep proving themselves in each game.

"I will talk about both Rohit and Kohli. In the last game Rohit played differently. His body language is seen on the field when he captains usually. In the last game that involvement was less. The same problem could come with Virat as well. He may feel that he is not the captain and has to prove himself in every game. They are not players who have to keep proving themselves right? They are legends. Every game cannot be a test for them," he said on his YouTube channel.

Kaif reflected that should Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli feel like they are not enjoying playing anymore, they would themselves walk away. Despite being big names, their place for the upcoming ODI World Cup in 2027 is not confirmed at the moment.

"If they feel like they are not enjoying it, specially Rohit as his captaincy was also taken away, then I am telling you they will walk away. If these two are in the plan till the World Cup, then the management and coaches have to tell them that they are important and keep reminding them about their impact," he added.

However, the former Indian batter also stated that both stalwarts would have to play domestic cricket and keep scoring runs. He added that BCCI would have to make them play various tournaments throughout the season. Notably, the two have retired from T20Is and Tests. With a lesser number of ODIs, their game time would thus not be enough unless they play domestic cricket.

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Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will have to show their passion to play the World Cup, believes Kaif

Talking about Virat Kohli, Mohammad Kaif reckoned that he was not a player who should be dropped from the ODI side based on his form in a few games. However, he also stated that Kohli would have to travel more often to India and play in other tournaments. Virat Kohli has shifted his base to London recently.

"Virat has scored 51 centuries and if people say he will not play the next game if he does not score, this question should not come to drop him. He is not a player to be dropped. You have to talk to him properly and organize things. And if Virat also wants to play the World Cup he will have to take the flight from England to India every two weeks. He will have to come to play games. You play the IPL but what will you do after that? You have to travel in India and play games if you plan to win the World Cup," he said.

Further, Kaif reflected that both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli would have to show their passion if they truly aspire to play the World Cup. He highlighted to importance of gaining rhythm and maintaining form, and opined that it would only be possible by playing more and more matches.

"If there is so much passion, then these two will have also have to bring their ego down a bit and play other matches. As batters, you should want to get games. There will be problems of travelling, crowd gathering, and all that. I understand all this. But they will also have to show that passion. You will have to gain that rhythm. The players are not bad but they will have to keep that rhythm and form going. They will have to play matches in India and there is no other go than that."

Looking at their ODI numbers, Rohit Sharma has scored 11176 runs from 274 ODIs at an average of 48.59 with 32 hundreds. Meanwhile, Virat Kohli has amassed 14181 runs from 303 games at an average of 57.64 with 51 centuries.