Rohit Sharma leaves 2027 World Cup participation open, says time is still far away

Rohit Sharma remained non-committal about playing the 2027 ODI World Cup, saying the event is still far away. The former India captain's comments come amid speculation over his future after his retirement from T20I and Test cricket

Mumbai: October 2027 is still far away, said star Indian cricketer Rohit Sharma on Thursday as he responded to a query on whether he would play the ODI World Cup at that time.

The one-line response came on the sidelines of an event here, a rare comment from the former captain amid swirling speculation around his participation in the mega-event and the course his career will take, given that he no longer plays the T20I and Test formats.

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“October 2027 is far away, we will see about it then,” said Rohit when asked about his participation at the Global Fintech Fest by a member of the audience here.

The 2027 ODI World Cup is to be co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.

He was also asked whether, in case of an Indian title win, there would be an open-bus parade to celebrate with fans, much like in 2024, when the team led by Rohit carried out a victory parade in Mumbai after its T20 World Cup triumph in the West Indies.

“….I do not think a bus parade would be possible now,” Rohit replied.

BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia has made it clear that there is no room for speculation around the batting great as he is batting well. Rohit had scored a century in his last outing for India in ODIs.

“He is playing superbly in all matches. So what more do you want? In the last match (against England), he scored 138 runs, so why is there speculation? I do not want to give some fodder for the speculators,” Saikia told reporters after the BCCI’s review meeting here at its headquarters some days ago.