BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar spoke on the future of India veterans Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, keeping the 2027 World Cup in mind, and stated that the duo should first play in the upcoming ODI series in Australia, as the ICC event is still more than two years away.

Kohli and Rohit will play for the Indian team for the first time since March this year in the ICC Champions Trophy. They last played any competitive cricket in IPL 2025 and will now return to India's colors after eight months.

Ajit Agarkar has clarified that Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are 'not on trial' in the forthcoming ODI series against Australia, stating that the three games would not determine their chances for the 2027 World Cup.

He stated it would be 'silly' to estimate their chances for the headline tournament based on game or series results because their records are so good, but he also implied that they are not irreplaceable.

Kohli and Rohit now only play ODIs after retiring from T20Is and TESTs, and by the time the 2027 World Cup arrives, Rohit will be over 40 and Kohli will be over 39.

“They are part of the squad for Australia. They have been incredible players for a long time. It’s not a forum to keep harping on individuals. You want to focus on the team and what the team wants to achieve. And in two years’ time, we don’t know what the situation is going to be. So, why just them two? It could be some other younger players,” Agarkar said on NDTV.

When asked about the likelihood of Kohli and Rohit making it to the 2027 World Cup and whether each series from now on will play a role in that decision, Agarkar delivered a sensible response.

“That’ll be a bit silly, won’t it? When one averages over 50 (Kohli, 57.9) and one is close to 50 (Rohit, 48.8), you are not going to put them on trial for every game. 2027 is a long way away; they play only one format and are playing after the Champions Trophy final on the 9th of March. They are playing on the 19th of October… So once they start playing, then you assess as you go forward. They are not on trial. They have achieved all they had to achieve, not just in terms of trophies but runs. It’s not that if both of them don’t get runs this series, that’ll be the reason they won’t be there, or if they get three hundreds, that’ll be the reason they play in 2027. It’s still a long way away. We’ll see how it all shapes up. We have some ideas, and as we go along, we’ll have a better idea of how the team is progressing," Agarkar said.

Meanwhile, he was also asked whether the team may be burdened by legacy players. Although balance is necessary, no team wants to play without seasoned players, according to Agarkar.

“Not at all. You have legacy cricketers because they have built it for themselves with their performances. There’s not one team in the world that won’t want experience. There’s always got to be a balance between some of our youth or newer players and the senior players to guide them. You’d rather have the experienced players playing well. When you have been around for a while, you take pride in your performances. Like I said, they have created that legacy for themselves, and you treat them with that respect. Maybe some of the conversations you have with those players don’t come out, but you treat them with nothing but respect. You want them around the team; every year so many players make their debut for India. You want the senior guys to be around to guide them," he said.

India and Australia will play the first ODI in Perth on Sunday.