Ro-Ko in World Cup 2027? Agarkar breaks silence

With the Indian cricket team next scheduled to take on Australia in a white-ball series comprising of three ODIs and five T20Is, it will also see the return of two veterans of the game - Rohit Sharma and Virat

Kohli. The two stalwarts will return into the Indian setup after last featuring in India’s ICC Champions Trophy 2025 title triumph in the UAE in March.

While their return has been highly anticipated, there has been a lot of talk around their future. Members of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI have also been asked about their future in Indian cricket, former cricketer turned Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar was recently questioned about the same at the NDTV World Summit 2025.

In two years' time, we don't know what the situation is going to be: Ajit Agarkar on Ro-Ko's participation in CWC 2027

Although, the duo, who remain active only in the ODIs, have reassured to play the 2027 Cricket World Cup, Agarkar however, avoided to give a clear picture, replicating head coach Gautam Gambhir’s stance who has urged to live in the present rather than think of what’s 2.5 years away. Addressing the audience at the NDTV World Summit, Agarkar said, "They are part of the squad at the moment for Australia. Like I said, they have been incredible players for a long time.”

“And it’s probably not the forum to keep harping on individuals because you want to try and focus on the team and what the team wants to achieve. And in two years' time, we don't know what the situation is going to be. Why only them? It could be some younger player, too,” he added. The selector was asked whether the two would be judged on every series that they will now play, to which he replied, "That would be a bit silly, wouldn't it? When a guy averages over 50, and the other is close to it. You are not going to put them on trial for every game, but 2027 is a long way ahead. Both play one format. They are playing after what… 7 months. They haven't had a lot of cricket.”

Watch Ajit Agarkar speak of Ro-Ko's future in ODIs:

He concluded adding, “Once they start playing, then you assess. They have achieved all they had to in terms of winning trophies, but also runs.” It is to be noted that while the duo retired from T20Is after India’s T20 World Cup 2024 triumph in Barbados, their retirement from Test cricket came in May 2025, midway through the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.