The Lord's ODI against England could well be Rohit's farewell.
The selectors reportedly aim to transition to younger talents like Yashasvi Jaiswal, as the team builds a formidable squad for the 2027 World Cup.
While Rohit has put a lot of hard work to improve his physical fitness lately, the selectors are apparently not happy with his performances.
The veteran opener has hit the 50-run mark only once in eight ODIs this year and has looked a pale shadow of himself in the ongoing England series, returning with scores of 11 (21 balls) and 26 (47 balls) in two outings.
According to a TOI report, selectors considered dropping Rohit following the home ODI series against Afghanistan, where he allegedly refused a request to rest, forcing skipper Shubman Gill to move to No. 3 to accommodate Jaiswal as Virat Kohli missed the series due to a hamstring injury.
"The selectors had made up their minds to drop him after the ODI series against Afghanistan at home last month. Rohit also declined to rest for the third ODI in Chennai to give Jaiswal a look-in. Eventually, captain Shubman Gill had to bat at No. 3 to accommodate Jaiswal," a BCCI source told the publication.
"It was always going to be a challenge for Rohit since he retired from the other two formats. He also plays very little domestic cricket. He turned up for two Vijay Hazare Trophy matches last season, one of which was against Sikkim. He needs more time to find his rhythm. The selectors have conveyed their opinion. Now, it's up to Rohit and the board to decide how they want to go ahead with it," the source added.
Meanwhile, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia has firmly denied the rumours that the 39-year-old will hang up his boots from international cricket after the third ODI against England at Lord’s.
“There are a lot of speculations going on in the media about Rohit Sharma’s future. I want to firmly assert that there has been no such discussion that Rohit will be playing his last match at Lord’s on Sunday,” Saikia told RevSportz.
“Rohit is a regular member of the Indian ODI team and he will continue to represent the country as long as he is in the scheme of things. In other words, the Lord’s ODI won’t be his last match,” he further stated.