“Build the team around Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma” - Harbhajan Singh suggests selection committee and team management

Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh has suggested that the Indian team management should make the Indian ODI team around the veteran batting duo of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the lead-up to the ICC ODI World Cup in 2027.

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Speaking exclusively on his YouTube channel, Bhajji has asserted that the selection committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, shouldn’t lose experience in the pursuit of youngsters in the team, adding that the talismanic duo can deliver in big matches. 

"Are there bigger and better players than Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli? So you shouldn't sideline them, but instead think about how to build the team around them. If you lose experience in the pursuit of youth, then it can be a problem from time to time in big matches. So they must play, and this will be a big World Cup because after that, it's possible they'll never play another World Cup," Harbhajan Singh said on his YouTube channel. 

"The way Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are batting, and how the batting order looks with them, it looks so solid that they should play. They will maintain their fitness. But the questions about whether they will or should play the World Cup, it is okay to look towards the younger players but do not ignore the players who are already proven performers with the ability to deliver in big matches," he added.

"In the last World Cup also, they missed it in the final, with the pitch being very slow. If there was a bitter pitch, India would have won. There was a lot of pressure, which is why Australia played better than India and won. But the way India played under Rohit Sharma was unbelievable. So the first two names should be Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, and the rest of the team should be formed after that," he concluded.

Notably, Virat Kohli was adjudged the player of the match in the recently concluded ODI series against South Africa for two centuries and an unbeaten half-century. On the other hand, Rohit Sharma was awarded the player of the match on the Australian tour Down Under for an unbeaten century and a half-century.

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