Former India captains Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been informed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) that they will have to take part in the Vijay Hazare Trophy matches if they want to continue playing international cricket for India. Virat and Rohit retired from T20Is on June 29, 2024, and stepped away from Test cricket in May 2025. They are only active in ODIs now and last played for the Men in Blue in October 2025 against Australia. In the three-match ODI series, which India lost with a scoreline of 1-2, Rohit scored a half-century in the second game and an unbeaten century in the third, whereas Kohli also crossed the 50-run mark in the third ODI played at Sydney Cricket Ground on October 25.
“The board and team management
have conveyed to both of them that they will have to play domestic cricket if they want to play for India. As they both have retired from two formats, they have to play domestic cricket to be match-fit,” a BCCI source was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
As per the publication, Rohit has confirmed his availability to the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) for the Vijay Hazare Trophy, but there is no clarity over Kohli’s participation.
Kohli, who is the second-highest run-getter in the 50-over format of the game, last played in the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Delhi on February 18, 2010, against Services. In that fixture he led Delhi, and current BCCI president Mithun Manhas, along with former India opener Shikhar Dhawan, was also part of Delhi’s playing XI.
In fact, Rohit reportedly has informed the MCA that he is even available for the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 (SMAT) tournament, which is scheduled to start on November 26.
However, chances of Rohit playing in SMAT are very low because of his inclusion in the India-South Africa ODI series, which is set to start on November 30 in Ranchi. While the BCCI selectors are yet to announce India’s squad for the three-match ODI series against the Proteas, there’s an almost negligible chance of Rohit getting ignored for the home series, especially after he won the Player of the Series award in Australia and became the world’s No. 1 ODI batter on October 29.
