Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have already retired from T20I and Test formats.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli called time on their T20I career following the T20 World Cup triumph in 2024, while they stepped away from the Test format in May this year.
There has been no ODI cricket for India since the end of Champions Trophy 2025 and the next series is scheduled in Australia, slated to start on October 19 in Perth.
Ahead of their much-awaited return to international cricket, former India head coach Ravi Shastri has commented on Rohit and Kohli’s future in the ODI format, suggesting that the ageing pair is not certainties for the 2027 World Cup.
"That's why they're here (playing the ODI series against Australia). They're part of the mix," Shastri told reporters at Kayo Sport's Summer of Cricket launch in Sydney on Monday.
"It depends on their fitness, their hunger and, of course, form. So, I think this series is very important to see how they go. They themselves will know by the end of this series how they feel and then it's their call.
"(It's) the same thing with Steve Smith (who retired from ODIs in March) from Australia's point of view. At that age, you've got to enjoy it and (you've) still got to have the hunger.
"But there's no substitute for experience when it comes to the big games, as we saw in the Champions Trophy. Come the big games and the big boys step up," he added.
Meanwhile, the Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection panel has removed the 38-year-old Rohit from ODI captaincy and handed over the reins to young opener Shubman Gill, with the 2027 World Cup firmly in sight.
Rohit and Kohli, two of India’s modern-day greats, continue to feature in the 15-member squad for the tour Down Under, ensuring that experience remains integral to India’s transition.
Following the three-match ODI series, India will face Australia in five T20Is from October 29 to November 8.
India’s T20I squad features a host of IPL stars who have played little-to-no cricket in Australia like Sanju Samson, Rinku Singh, Abhishek Sharma and 22-year-old Tilak Varma, who starred with the bat in the Asia Cup final last month.
"(Varma's) innings in that Asia Cup final was absolutely fantastic," Shastri told cricket.com.au.
"Because under pressure to play like that (was impressive). There's some good young guns there in (Yashasvi) Jaiswal, there's (Shubman) Gill, there's Tilak Varma.
"A lot of good young talent and lot of allrounders as well in Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube and Axar Patel, so it's a strong white-ball unit. India is much stronger in white ball than the red ball. Rohit Sharma … Virat Kohli … they know that these youngsters are pushing them."
India’s ODI squad: Shubman Gill (Captain), 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.
India’s T20I squad: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill (VC), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Sanju Samson (WK), Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar.