New Delhi: India’s two modern greats will be in whites-and-colours hibernation for the next month. After featuring in all three ODIs against West Indies, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have no 50-over cricket scheduled for 30 days — their next ODI will come on India’s tour of New Zealand.
The West Indies sign-off
Both signed off in style. Rohit scored 32, 101 and 92 in the three-match series, while Kohli made 139*, 29 and a golden duck. In front of home crowds, the former captains showed their class remains intact — and their selection for New Zealand is a formality for the world’s No. 1 ODI side.
The New Zealand challenge
India’s tour begins with five T20Is in Christchurch from October 22, followed by five ODIs — the first at Eden Park, Auckland on November 4 — and concludes with two Tests from November 19 to December 1. New Zealand conditions will test both: Rohit averages in the 30s there without an ODI hundred in 14 matches (four fifties), while Kohli has 596 runs in 13 ODIs in the country with one century. The Tests will also be a key examination for India’s new pace battery.
The bigger picture
With the 2027 World Cup cycle now the planning horizon, every ODI matters for India’s senior duo. Rohit, fourth in the ICC ODI batting rankings, and Kohli remain the batting spine around which Shubman Gill’s young side is being built. A month’s rest now; then the real examination begins.
Image: Wikimedia Commons
