BCCI Wants Rohit Sharma And Virat Kohli To Participate In Vijay Hazare Trophy: Report

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) wants former India captains Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to play in the 2025-26 edition of the Vijay Hazare Trophy. The premier domestic one-day tournament is scheduled to take place from December 24 to January 18. According to a report in the Times of India on Saturday (November 29), “the board would have been pleased if they (Rohit and Virat) had played some cricket in England during the summer. They will be advised to take part in the Vijay Hazare Trophy next month.”

It was reported earlier this month that Rohit has made himself available for Mumbai’s Vijay Hazare Trophy matches, but there is still no official clarity over Kohli’s participation. Kohli hasn’t played in the VHT for Delhi for more

than 10 years now. He did play one Ranji Trophy match for the national capital-based team under Ayush Badoni’s leadership earlier this year at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi, and it should not be a surprise for anybody if he decides to represent his domestic team in the Vijay Hazare Trophy as well.

It has also been reported by TOI that following the conclusion of the India-South Africa ODI series, which will be played from November 30 to December 6, the BCCI is planning to set up a meeting between selectors and the team management to “firm up a plan on Rohit and Kohli’s future” in the ODI setup, with an eye on the 2027 ODI World Cup.

As per the report, the team management is “working on identifying backup players for the duo in case a situation arises where either of the two cannot make it to the showcase event.”

“It is very important that players of Rohit and Kohli’s stature are given clarity about what is expected of them and how the current management views their roles. They can’t just be playing with uncertainty,” a BCCI source was quoted as saying by the publication.

“They did score runs in the third ODI in Australia. But the series was already lost, and the match was set up by the bowlers in the first innings. They looked rusty in the first two matches. One can’t afford that in every series,” the source added.