“Then you don't fit in the plan” - Ravi Ashwin offers a piece of advice to Virat Kohli & Rohit Sharma

Former Team India spinner and analyst Ravi Ashwin has offered a serious piece of advice to both talismanic Indian batters, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who are making their comeback for the three-match ODI series against Australia, starting on October 19 in Perth.

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Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ashwin stated that the veteran batting duo needs to get more batting practice by taking part in the domestic tournaments like the Vijay Hazare Trophy to stay match fit. Notably, India is scheduled to play only a limited games before the ICC ODI World Cup 2027 in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia.

"The India A series is currently going on. You know that there are not many ODI matches before the 2027 Cricket World Cup. So Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma should be told to play the series. They should be told, 'If you don't play this series, then you don't fit in the plan. If you are not a part of this series, you need to go and play Vijay Hazare Trophy because that is another thing we can look at the form you are in'," Ashwin said on 'Ash Ki Baat' on his YouTube channel.

"I have heard it in the past that players don't like to play at times because maybe they are not motivated enough to play India A series. It could happen. Since you want to play 2027 Cricket World Cup, show that you are serious about it. Go and play Ranji Trophy cricket and other tournaments; the selectors will also know, he is serious about playing," he added.

For the unversed, Kohli and Rohit last played international cricket in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which India successfully won after defeating New Zealand in the grand finale in March 2025. However, since then, they have taken part only in the IPL 2025 season.

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