BCCI on Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli Vijay Hazare Trophy: Two luminaries of contemporary Indian cricket, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, have thrown towel in Tests and T20Is to concentrate more on increasing their stay in ODI format. The 50-over game is appropriate to them at the ages of 36 and 38 respectively. They are inspired by the dream of winning the ODI World Cup a trophy that they are yet to win with eyes focused on 2027.
BCCI domestic cricket strategy and ODI stars
Latest news circulated by Dainik Jagran suggests that the three-matches ODI series against Australia in October this year would be the last call of curtain of both Rohit and Kohli in international game. If they decide to continue, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) plans to have them participate in the 2025 Vijay Hazare Trophy for Mumbai and Delhi.
This is an effort to ensure that the veterans do not lose touch with competitive cricket. Kohli last played in the Vijay Hazare Trophy in 2010, scoring 16 runs against Services, while Rohit’s most recent appearance came in 2018, with 24 runs in a semi-final against Hyderabad.
Demands of Domestic Cricket on Rohit and Kohli
The efforts of the BCCI to include the players in the local competitions is part of a policy change in the wake of India 1-3 Border-Gavaskar Trophy defeat with Australia. Any centrally contracted-players will now have to play state level so as to be selected in the national team.
Earlier in 2025, both Kohli and Rohit returned to domestic cricket, playing the Ranji Trophy as per BCCI’s directive to regain form. The board now seems poised to shed this expectation even at the Vijay Hazare Trophy which is the national one-day cricket tournament. This poses concerns on the feasibility of how these accomplished personalities will squeeze the tournament into their agenda and how that may affect them.
Scheduling Conflicts and the Reality for Kohli and Rohit
The 2025-26 ODI calendar of India has nine matches, three matches as the away side against Australia, and six matches as the home side with three against South Africa and three against New Zealand. Those two series against Australia and South Africa will take place ahead of the start of the Vijay Hazare Trophy that will be held later this month.
In such cases, when these six ODIs go well, then the necessity of Kohli and Rohit to play Vijay Hazare Trophy goes down the gutter. But in case their form fails, they may be requested to take part in the tournament to get match fitness.
This Vijay Hazare Trophy is to be held between December 24 and January 18 overlaying the ODI series against New Zealand, which begins January 11. The two cities of Mumbai and Delhi will have seven group stage matches in which the two players of Kohli and Rohit would not be expected to play all the games because the ODI team is expected to be named around the same time.
Prognosis of Domestic Involvement of Rohit and Kohli
Considering the schedule and the entrenched position of the players, it would be quite unlikely that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will play a critical role in Vijay Hazare Trophy. There priorities and commitments may further take them away where they do not have to be in domestic cricket.
South of the New Zealand series, India play England in July 2026, so there is lots of cricket ahead of them. At least, the station being taken by BCCI which has the intent of integrating these two legends in the domestic one-day contest has some logistical and practical challenges, which make their employability in the questionable picture.
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