While the future of veteran batter Virat Kohli and ODI captain Rohit Sharma is still being debated, reports have stated that the duo is set to be included in the Indian squad for the upcoming Australia tour.
India is set to play three ODIs and five T20Is in Australia, with the ODI series starting on October 19 in Perth. The BCCI selectors are expected to meet on Saturday, October 4, the third day of the ongoing first Test against the West Indies in Ahmedabad, to choose the ODI and T20I squads.
Hardik Pandya (quadriceps injury) and Rishabh Pant (foot fracture recovery) are likely to be unavailable, and Test captain Shubman Gill's workload will be evaluated as he is playing in West Indies Tests only three days after the Asia Cup final. There is a possibility that the BCCI selectors will give him a rest for Australia ODIs or T20Is, or both.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, if picked for the Australia ODIs, will return to the Indian fold for the first time since March, when they played in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 triumph. Rohit Sharma is set to continue as captain of the ODI team, unless he himself asks to be relieved of the responsibility to focus solely on his batting.
With Kohli and Rohit now only playing ODIs, having retired from T20Is and Tests, BCCI selectors are reportedly in no mood to make a concrete decision on their future regarding the 2027 ICC World Cup, even though India has only six ODIs scheduled this season—three against Australia down under and three against South Africa at home.
The focus of the selectors and the Indian team is to prepare for the T20 World Cup 2026 to be held in India and Sri Lanka, and to gain the maximum points from the four Tests to be played at home.
Coming to Jasprit Bumrah, he is set to play in both tests against South Africa, even if the medical team and the player decide to opt out of the Delhi game against the West Indies, which is still unclear. This is despite BCCI selector-in-chief Ajit Agarkar saying that Bumrah has confirmed his availability for both the tests.
However, after playing the Asia Cup and now two Tests, with a three-week break before another challenging Test assignment, followed by a T20I series in preparation for the T20 World Cup, the natural conclusion is to give Bumrah a deserved break from both the white ball series Down Under, which requires substantial travelling.
Shubman Gill is the vice-captain of the Indian ODI team, as per the ICC Champions Trophy squad announcement. However, with the upcoming schedule, the selectors will keep Gill’s workload in mind.
The Indian squad has only one day between the second and third ODIs in Adelaide and Sydney, which will be a travel day. A day separates the first and second T20Is, as well as the fourth and fifth T20Is. If Gill is rested for the ODIs, Rohit will have either Abhishek Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal becoming his opening partner.
Hardik Pandya is likely to miss the Australia tour due to his injury, and it seems that the BCCI selectors are torn between Nitish Kumar Reddy and Shivam Dube for replacement. On the other hand, Sanju Samson is set to pip Dhruv Jurel as the backup wicketkeeper for Australia, with KL Rahul donning the keeping gloves for ODIs.
(PTI inputs)
