No Rohit and Kohli? Team India ODI World Cup 2027 Likely Squad List
Explore Team India predicted 2027 ODI World Cup squad without Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Who replaces the legends? Meet the rising stars and leadership contenders
It’s been only a few months since Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma announced their retirement from the longest format of the game, Test cricket. Not long ago, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli announced their retirement from T20 Internationals after they had won the T20 World Cup in 2024. Having retired from two of the three International formats, it was expected that Rohit and Virat would continue to be a part of the ODIs.
However, just as we, as fans, were going through a happy time, there is big news via reports getting circulated that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli won’t be a part of the Indian ODI squad. This means these two may not feature in the biggest spectacle in cricket – the Cricket World Cup 2027. Surely, these are just rumours getting circulated, and may not be true. But then we didn’t expect Rohit and Kohli to retire from test cricket too, but they did.
It’s frightening to hear the news about Rohit and Virat deciding to call it quits in the ODI format. Really hoping the news isn’t true, but with the World Cup still two years away, and India playing very few ODI series, this decision can’t be ruled out completely. While we wait for the official confirmation on the departure of Virat and Rohit, let’s, in the meantime, look at the best predicted squad list for Team India for the ODI World Cup 2027.
2027 ODI World Cup Predicted Squad Explained
If Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, both, do not feature in the ODI scheme of things going forward, then we will see two big changes happening in the ODI Squad. Firstly, we would need a solid backup opener in the squad, and secondly, we would need a strong middle-order batter. These two positions are very critical in the Indian team, and will go to the players who can add good value for this spot.
In all likelihood, India will replicate the Champions Trophy 2025 squad for the ODI World Cup 2027 squad – barring two major exceptions, of course. From the CT 2025 squad, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, and Varun Chakravarthy seem the sure-shot players, not just for the overall squad, but also for the strongest playing 11.
Other than these 9 players, and aside from Rohit and Virat’s replacements, we should see Yashasvi Jaiswal as the second opener in the squad. Sanju Samson is the backup keeper in the side. Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh as the other two pacers in the side. So, that makes a total of 13 players in the side with a space for two more players. So, who among the current probables deserves to be in the side as Rohit and Virat’s replacements?
Who Replaces Rohit & Virat for the 2027 ODI World Cup?
Well, from the current crop, we need a backup opener and a solid middle-order batter. If we look at the current list of probable players, Sai Sudharsan as backup opener and Rishabh Pant as the middle-order batter seem ideal. Sai has the technique that is ideal for ODI cricket. With Sai already with the Indian team, it won’t be difficult to get in the ODI side now. Whereas Rishabh Pant is a tried and tested player, and deserves those chances as a middle-order keeper-batter.
So, that overall completes the best predicted 15-member side for Team India without Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Definitely, we want our most-loved players, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, to continue to be in the ODI side. Most likely, they will be in the side, and all these rumours about them getting retired will be dropped too. But until then, the below-mentioned squad looks ideal, and almost perfect to win the 2027 ODI World Cup. To recap, the ODI World Cup shall be played in South Africa, Namibia, and Zimbabwe in November 2027..
Team India 2027 ODI World Cup Best Predicted Squad List w/o Rohit and Kohli
- Batters: Sai Sudharsan, Shreyas Iyer (vc), Shubman Gill (c) & Yashasvi Jaiswal
- WKs: KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant & Sanju Samson
- All-rounders: Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya & Ravindra Jadeja
- Bowlers: Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav & Varun Chakravarthy
Finally, if Rohit Sharma, our primary Captain, is not available, who will captain the side will be crucial. India have three potential options to explore, and those are Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, and Jasprit Bumrah. While Bumrah has already given up on any full-time Captaincy due to injury concerns, one of Gill or Iyer may take over the Captaincy. Of the two, Shubman Gill seems ideal as a long-term bet. Gill is also the Test team Captain, and has been doing well. So, making Shubman Gill as the Captain dwells well with the team.
Thanks for reading! Who do you think should replace Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the Team India squad for the ODI World Cup 2027? Please email your thoughts to business@cricalytics.com
