Rohit Sharma’s wish to extend his India career until the 2027 World Cup in South Africa is no secret. The 38-year-old suffered a heartbreaking loss in the 2023 World Cup final at home as captain. Now retired from T20Is and Tests, the Hit-Man is putting the hard yards to make one last push at a World Cup title. He will be 40 then, and while doubts remain, former teammate Irfan Pathan as backed the India ODI captain to pull through.
‘Emotions play a part’ Rohit Sharma’s 2027 WC push fueled by 2023 heartbreak
Rohit Sharma and Irfan Pathan were teammates during India’s victorious 2007 T20 World Cup win. Sharma added another to his cabinet as captain in 2024 and then retired. The ODI World Cup Trophy is the only silverware missing from his cabinet in limited overs, which is fueling his desire to play until 2027. While Rohit’s fitness has always been in the public eye, the Indian captain reported passed a recent bronco test with flying colours despite being 38.
“I’ve been following those fitness tests as well. I’ve been seeing the pictures. This new test is obviously not easy as well. If he was able to clear it that means his fitness is top notch. I had a long conversation with him regarding his future plans and he is very keen to continue playing,” Irfan Pathan said during an interaction arranged by Sony Sports Network ahead of Asia Cup 2025.
“Obviously every player wants to play but this guy has been a fantastic leader, he’s outstanding in white ball cricket and is one of our greats play ODI cricket. We all had a heartbreak with the 2023 World Cup final and Rohit Sharma had a bigger heartbreak. So those emotions play part. He wants to continue playing and make a mark going forward,” the former India all-rounder added.
‘Age does not matter, gametime an issue’
Rohit’s retirement from Test and T20Is mean the 38-year-old will enjoy a lot of downtime. He last played competitive cricket in the IPL 2025 and has been on a break since. Rohit will only return in October for the ODI series against Australia. In the meantime, he has teamed up with former batting coach Abhishek Nayar to work towards match fitness. Irfan Pathan believes should Rohit manage to adapt to his lack of gametime, he could very well perform at the 2027 World Cup.
“As far as the player is fit, age does not matter. But the challenge for him will be to have gametime. There will be lot of gaps between One Day games. We are in 2025 still and the world Cup is in 2027. Playing for India, I don’t think there will be issues with motivation. But how much gametime they will have and how much he can continue playing cricket in whatever form, because they have retired from test cricket and T20Is. This is the only challenge they have. If they overcome it, there won’t be any issues going forward,” Pathan concluded.
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