Gill on Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli: ‘They remain very integral part of our team’

3 min readUpdated: Jul 13, 2026 11:56 PM IST

Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli in practice ahead of the 1st ODI vs England. (CREIMAS)

India’s Test and ODI captain Shubman Gill said that he had spoken to Virat Kohli about the players India will need to invest in who would fit the bill leading into the 2027 ODI World Cup.

“The conversation was regarding the combination – what combination could be best for us, which players may not be in the team right now but could help us in the future, which bowlers, all-rounders and spinners. We were talking about that,” Gill said at the pre-match press conference ahead of the England ODI series on Monday.

India gave debuts to pacer Gurnoor Brar and left-arm spin bowling all-rounder Harsh Dubey in the Afghanistan ODI series in June, which the team won 3-0. The former impressed everyone with his high pace and emerged as the leading wicket-taker and was included in the ODI squad for the series starting at Edgbaston on Tuesday.

The skipper said both Kohli and Rohit Sharma still had a lot to offer to the team.

“I think Virat bhai and Rohit bhai have been the backbone of the Indian batting line-up for the past decade. They remain a very integral part of our team. The experience and skill they bring is obviously very valuable. We have seen what they have done over the past decade in different conditions, consistently and on different occasions,” Gill said.

The absence of Hardik Pandya, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Harshit Rana has left India with no seam-bowling all-rounder options. India drafted in Shivam Dube for Reddy and also included Prince Yadav in the squad for Rana.

Gill said that it was “unfortunate” that India did not have their services at a time when they wished to give them game time.

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“We were a bit unfortunate. Reddy got injured before the series, and Harshit Rana is injured. We wanted to play them in as many matches as possible before the World Cup so that when their turn comes, they feel settled. Obviously, because of the injuries, we have had to play a different combination,” he said.

Despite the trio’s absence, Gill said that he did not feel India were an unsettled XI leading into the first ODI in Birmingham on Tuesday.

“I don’t think there are any concerning areas. And I also don’t think we have an unsettled XI. But obviously, you have to give the new players a chance and experience. The more they are in pressure situations and the more they do well, the better it will be for us before the World Cup,” he said.

The right-hander added that the team’s 4-0 loss in the T20I series would have no bearing on the ODIs.

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“I don’t think that will have an impact on this team. It’s a different format, a different team and the goal is different. We just played the T20 World Cup and won. Now, playing the one-day series, our team has a different goal as to what we want to achieve. In that regard, I think the atmosphere is different,” he said.