Sunil Gavaskar wants Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli to play Ranji Trophy matches, but will they?

Rohit Sharma, Sunil Gavaskar, Virat Kohli (Pic: File Pic)

Team India after winning the coveted T20 World Cup 2024 has seen an unexpected fall in Test cricket. Recently, the side suffered a 1-3 loss against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

The loss has highlighted the fading form of some of the senior players. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, being the stalwarts of Indian cricketers over the years found themselves taking centre stage of criticism from fans and the cricket fraternity.

Several former players and experts have advised that both Rohit and Virat should play in the upcoming Ranji season. Lack of runs from the duo has been too apparent and cricket lovers feel the star players are taking for granted their place in the national team.

Legendary Team India batsman Sunil Gavaskar, known for his straight drives on-field and straight talk off-field shared his thoughts on senior players' performances. He stated that the selection criteria should make it compulsory for all the players to make their appearances in domestic cricket and no excuses should be tolerated right then.

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Coming back to Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, it has been over a decade for the duo making their last domestic appearances. Not only just these two stars but also Shubman Gill and Ravindra Jadeja have faced the backlash following

Amid all the the criticism, the question arises, will Rohit and Virat play in Ranji Trophy matches? The reason being is the next red-ball match India will play is against England from June 18-22 in Leeds.

If the selection committee does not pick the star duo for the England Test series, what do they have in their calendars for red-ball cricket? The answer is RANJI TROPHY!

The international events in which Rohit and Virat can feature before the Indian Premier League is the ODI series against England and the Champions Trophy 2025.

The Ranji Trophy season will kick start from January 23, with Mumbai playing their first game against Jammu and Kashmir. Having played 128 first-class matches for Mumbai, Rohit Sharma has garnered 9,287 runs with 29 centuries and 38 half-centuries.

Stalwart Virat Kohli used to play for Delhi in domestic tournaments. The Delhiites will lock horns with Saurashtra in their first Ranji Trophy encounter. The right-hander has played 145 matches for Delhi in which he accumulated 11,097 runs laced with 36 tons and 38 half-centuries.

The question still lingers will the star Indian duo feature in Ranji Trophy matches or will they draw curtains to their illustrious career in red-ball cricket?