The moment Rohit Sharma would have feared came via a news report on Thursday (July 17).
He spent the past three years recovering from the pain of the 2023 World Cup, using the negative energy to build for
the 2024 T20 World Cup, winning it, then doing it all over again for the 2025 Champions Trophy, winning that, and then putting all he had to be leaner and fitter for one last hurrah in ODIs. All that amounted to nothing after the selectors told him he was no longer required and will be dropped soon.
He won’t be wrong to feel the call is harsh. There’s definite logic to the call but Rohit can be forgiven to think that after so many years of giving his blood, tears and sweat to the team, he deserved more time.
But now is not the time to give up. This is only over if Rohit wants it to be.
For starters, he still has one ODI to come, against England at Lord’s. Showing off his best here would be rememberd for a long, long time and 2027 is not that far away.
Secondly, the reports only suggest that Rohit has been told he will be dropped because the selectors want to test out Yashasvi Jaiswal. That might be fair on their part but Jaiswal still needs to prove that he deserves that chance — there will be around 20-30 ODIs till the World Cup, which is a long time for one more twist.
So instead of retiring and giving Ajit Agarkar clean air to experiment how much he wants in the next one year, Rohit can put up a fight by keeping himself available. Performing in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, and then in IPL 2027 would show that age is not a concern for him, as much as it isn’t with Virat Kohli.
If he sticks around and maintains form, any injury to one of the top-order player would make him the first-choice replacement. Rohit probably believes that he’s fit enough to continue, and that he can add more value to the team than Jaiswal, but if the selectors are putting the ball in his court, then he can also just take it and show with his performances.
If it comes to him or someone like, say, Ruturaj Gaikwad for the opening spot again in six months’ time, Rohit’s ICC record would be too good to deny.
So, no, Rohit’s dream for the 2027 World Cup is not dead, yet. All he needs to do is keep the candle burning long enough, and wait for the lucky break that he couldn’t get in 2011 or even in the 2023 final in Ahmedabad. It may not happen, but Rohit, and India, would never know if he doesn’t try.
