It came as a huge relief for fans when Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli played the ODI series against Australia Down Under in October last year. After all, it came after a brief break of over seven months. The gap of watching them dominate in India colours was seven months and a week. Now, after the completion of the India vs New Zealand ODI series, fans will have to wait quite a bit again to watch ‘Ro-Ko’ in action.
After dominating the three ODIs against South Africa in November/December, the duo played in the recently concluded three-match ODI rubber against New Zealand. It seemed as if India would go past the Kiwis easily, considering the experience and on-paper strength. But the match, on the field, flipped the script as the Kiwis gave another body blow to India by clinching the series 2-1.
While Rohit Sharma struggled throughout the series, Virat Kohli was in sublime touch as usual. Kohli started with a 93 in a winning run chase before a rare blip of 23 in Rajkot, where India lost. On Sunday night in the series-decider, Kohli played one of his best knocks in recent times, hammering 124 off 108. If only he had got support of any other top-order batter, he would’ve steered the chase in India’s favour. But he ran out of partners despite Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy showing promise. Rohit, however, could make only 61 runs in three games.
When will Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli play for India next?
What is next for Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli? Well, the domestic season brings the second leg of the Ranji Trophy but they won’t play since the duo has retired from the longest format of the game. Of course they aren’t part of the T20 World Cup 2026 since they hung up their T20I boots after winning the last edition in Barbados.
Rohit and Kohli will now be seen next in action playing for the Mumbai Indians (MI) and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), respectively, at the IPL 2026. As for India, they won’t be seen until June, which is around five months from now. As per the Future Tour Programme (FTP), Afghanistan are slated to tour India for a one-off Test match and 3 one-day internationals. Although the schedule is not out yet, the series is likely to go through since India don’t have many Asian countries to play against in bilaterals.
However, the next ODI series which is scheduled for India is against England in England. Another three-match series, starting July 14. The venues for the series are Edgbaston, Cardiff, and Lord’s. If the series against Afghanistan goes through, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are likely to play as many as 15 more one-day internationals by the end of 2026. Catch India’s entire ODI schedule below.
India’s ODI schedule 2025/26
| Series | Venue | Matches |
|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan Tour of India (likely) | India | 3 ODIs (June 2026) |
| India Tour of England | England | 3 ODIs (July 2026) |
| West Indies Tour of India | India | 3 ODIs (Sep-Oct 2026) |
| India Tour of New Zealand | New Zealand | 3 ODIs (Oct-Nov 2026) |
| Sri Lanka Tour of India | India | 3 ODIs (Dec 2026) |
