Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], October 4 : Chief selector Ajit Agarkar has affirmed that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will continue to be the linchpins in India's dressing room and are hopeful that they will continue to experience success in the ODI format during the twilight phase of their careers. However, Agarkar was quick to stress that when players are available, they should compete in domestic tournaments.
On Saturday, Agarkar dropped a bombshell by confirming that he had personally conveyed to Rohit that the management had moved on from him and passed the captaincy baton to Shubman Gill from the upcoming series in Australia. Rohit had retired from T20Is last year and pulled the curtain down on his Test career after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
Even Virat's retirement path bore a resemblance to Rohit's, leaving both available solely for the ODIs. Agarkar hopes for continued success for the duo in a format where they have thrived, with record-shattering performances and match-defining knocks.
"I don't think that changes. You're still playing for your country. They're still leaders in that dressing room. And we hope they are. Eventually, it's the runs. And they've scored tonnes of it, both of them. And has been extremely successful in this format. We hope they keep doing it," Agarkar told reporters in a press conference on Saturday in Ahmedabad.
"You don't have to think too far at this point. Those are two really experienced guys who have been around for a long time. So they would perhaps find it a little bit alien just to play one format, which is played the least. But they're probably the guys to answer that," he added.
With Rohit and Virat restricted to ODIs and having ample time on their calendars, Agarkar reaffirmed the directive for players without international commitments, advocating for them to participate in domestic tournaments to stay sharp after a long break.
"Yeah, I think we have made it clear a couple of years back now that whenever the guys are available, they should be playing domestic cricket. That's the only way you will keep yourself sharp and playing cricket if you have got a long enough break," he said.
The emphasis on domestic cricket grew prominent after India returned home, having failed to defend the BGT series for the first time in a decade. In the aftermath of the stringent protocols, Rohit and Virat returned to India's premier domestic tournament, the Ranji Trophy, for the first time in 10 and 13 years, respectively.
"Whether that's possible with the international cricket you are playing or not, that only time will tell. But if guys are free, they should be playing domestic cricket," Agarkar added.
India's ODI squad: Shubman Gill (C), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (WK), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Yashasvi Jaiswal.
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