As Virat Kohli returns to international cricket after a long eight-month break, there are two sets of questions: would Virat Kohli play the World Cup 2027, and should Virat Kohli play the World Cup 2027? The first question seems legitimate as Kohli hasn’t played any competitive cricket and gets into the India squad for the Australia series on the merit of his past form, not his current form. Chairman of the BCCI Selection Committee, Ajit Agarkar, made the first move by removing Rohit Sharma from captaincy and told the media that both the superstars are “non-committal” about their future and participation in WC 2027. However, Kohli’s close friend and coach at Royal Challengers Bengaluru in IPL, Dinesh Karthik, has lifted the lid on Kohli’s thought process.
Is Kohli willing to play the World Cup 2027 in South Africa in two years? The answer is absolutely, yes.
“He is keen to play the World Cup. In London, he was training during this big layoff that he had after a long time in his career. And, I also know that he was practising cricket easily two-three sessions a week. Now, that tells you that the man is serious about wanting to play the World Cup. And if he is around, there is no tension, according to me, because he knows what it takes to perform under pressure. He has done that time and time again, and I am very confident that he would do that again,” Dinesh Karthik said in an Instagram post.
A post shared by Dinesh Karthik (@dk00019)
Why is Kohli important to India in SA?
Anywhere he plays, Kohli will always be crucial to India’s ODI aspirations. But in South Africa, no one would be as crucial as him. Kohli has a batting average of 76.38 in South Africa. With the pitches likely to have bounce and carry, one would want their best ODI batter to be available. In the last ODI series, Kohli averaged 38.66 in three innings, including two fifties. Back in 2018, Kohli smashed three hundred in six innings, averaging 186.00. Hence, if India are looking at winning the trophy back, they would need Kohli.
“If you see how India have played for some time now, he is the fulcrum. He is the most important glue in the team around whom everyone else plays. The likes of Gill, Rohit, Shreyas Iyer, and KL Rahul all play attacking-positive cricket because they know there is a Virat Kohli to absorb pressure. In case things go wrong, he would take care of it from one end. The World Cup will be played in October-November. Having been part of the SA20, I can tell you that it’s the early part of their summer. So, the pitches will be slightly spicy. It will have something for the fast bowlers. It will always be hard and bouncy. He knows what it takes to handle pressure. He is the chasemaster,” Karthik said.
The Virat Kohli problem
While Dinesh Karthik raises a valid point that Kohli’s experience would be crucial, will he be ready for another South Africa challenge? While no one questions his skills, there is a question of preparedness. With no competitive cricket for eight months, Kohli is bound to be rusty in Australia. And even though he will play all three matches in the IND vs AUS ODI series and then the next three against South Africa after a month-long break, and then against New Zealand after another one-month gap, he would need to start from scratch. The reason is that he has already retired from two formats (Test and T20Is).
While Kohli will play the IPL 2026, there will be another long gap between the two ODI series. After the New Zealand series in January, India’s next ODI assignment would be in July. Hence, the stopgap situation could adversely impact Kohli’s form and thus place in the India ODI side.
Ajit Agarkar has already hinted that Kohli should play the Vijay Hazare Trophy. If Kohli does not play the domestic one-dayers and the following ODI series doesn’t go well, it would be difficult for Agarkar to keep his competitions out and not try to have backups in Tilak Varma and Sanju Samson.
“I think that we’ve made it clear a couple of years back that whenever the guys are available, they should be playing domestic cricket. That’s the only way you’ll keep yourself sharp and playing cricket, if you’ve got a long enough break. Whether that’s possible with the international cricket you’re playing or not, only time will tell. But if guys are free, I mean, that’s, they should be playing domestic cricket,” Agarkar said.
In any case, the IND vs AUS ODI series will give us a better understanding of where Kohli stands after the long break. If he continues to score runs in ODIs, it is only great for Indian cricket.
Dinesh Karthik clears the air on Virat Kohli’s World Cup 2027 commitment after Ajit Agarkar’s comment Inside Sport India.
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