Chetan Sharma backs Rohit Sharma to continue playing ODIs
Former India chief selector Chetan Sharma has backed 39-year-old Rohit Sharma to continue playing ODIs. "Age is just a number. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are the Kohinoors of Indian cricket. If they are fit and getting runs, then why not," he told TOI in Mumbai. He noted Rohit's 138 against England in the third ODI at Lord's on July 19. Current chief selector Ajit Agarkar's tenure ends October 4.
Source
Times of India — Top · read the original report ↗
Desk check · compared with the source
What the desk checked (5)
- Chetan Sharma said 'age is just a number' and backed Rohit Sharma, 39, to continue in ODIs. — Directly quoted and attributed to Chetan Sharma in comments to TOI on Monday.
- Ajit Agarkar's tenure as chief selector ends October 4 and he is not seeking an extension due to differences with BCCI over Rohit's future. — Presented in the source as 'widely believed'/'apparently' — unattributed inference, retained as such.
- Rohit scored 138 against England at Lord's in the third ODI on July 19. — Specific figure and date appear in the source text.
- BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia addressed uncertainty over Rohit's ODI future after a September 3 review meeting in Mumbai. — Attributed to a named BCCI official with date and venue in source.
- Chetan Sharma was India chief selector from Dec 2020 to Feb 2023 and played 23 Tests, 65 ODIs, taking 128 wickets. — Biographical figures stated in source; not independently verified.
Analysts’ view opinion
Chetan Sharma's remarks break no new ground factually, but they sharpen the central cricketing question: should ODI selection be driven purely by fitness and runs, or by a longer transition plan. Rohit's 138 at Lord's on July 19 is the strongest evidence for the performance-first argument. Against that, a World Cup cycle also needs younger batters to bank match time in the middle. With Agarkar's tenure ending on October 4, the debate is now tied to a change in the selection panel.
- As an ODI-only specialist now, Rohit's workload is far lighter, which makes 39 less of a barrier than it would be across three formats.
- The 138 at Lord's, even as a single innings, is recent proof he can still deliver top-order impact at the highest level.
- Sharma's past role as chief selector lends his view weight, but he is no longer part of the decision-making process.
- With Agarkar's term ending October 4, the incoming panel's philosophy becomes the decisive factor in Rohit's ODI future.
- His backing of mandatory domestic cricket for fit players sits logically alongside his performance-over-age argument.
What to watch — Watch who takes over as chief selector after October 4 and the shape of the next ODI squads — that is where the real signal on Rohit's place will come.
The story does not establish any final BCCI or selection-panel decision on Rohit's ODI future or his place in next year's World Cup squad; Chetan Sharma is offering a personal opinion.
Deep dive
Research brief · 8 facts · 8 dates · exam-readyThe brief
Context
Rohit Sharma's ODI future has been the subject of persistent speculation over the past year, intensified by the impending exit of BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar, whose tenure formally ends on October 4. It is widely believed that differences with the BCCI over Rohit's future are why Agarkar is not seeking an extension. Amid the debate, former India pacer and ex-chief selector Chetan Sharma has publicly backed the 39-year-old Rohit — and Virat Kohli — to continue in ODIs as long as they are fit and scoring runs.
Key facts
- Chetan Sharma called Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli the 'Kohinoors' of Indian cricket, saying 'age is just a number'.
- Rohit Sharma is 39 years old and scored 138 against England in the third ODI at Lord's on July 19.
- Ajit Agarkar's tenure as chief selector becomes official over after October 4, the last date of his term.
- On September 3, after a review meeting at BCCI headquarters in Mumbai, secretary Devajit Saikia again sought to quash uncertainty over Rohit's ODI future.
- Chetan Sharma was India's chief selector from December 2020 to February 2023, and his panel appointed Rohit as captain.
- Chetan Sharma played 23 Tests and 65 ODIs from 1984-94, taking 128 wickets, and was the first bowler to take a hat-trick in ODI World Cup history (1987 v New Zealand at Nagpur).
- Rohit captained India to their second T20 World Cup title, the first in 17 years.
- BCCI has made it mandatory for all India players to play domestic cricket as long as they are fit and available.
Timeline
- 1984-94Chetan Sharma's India career: 23 Tests, 65 ODIs, 128 wickets.
- 1987Chetan Sharma becomes the first bowler to take a hat-trick in ODI World Cup history, against New Zealand at Nagpur.
- December 2020 - February 2023Chetan Sharma serves as India's chief selector; his panel makes Rohit Sharma captain.
- July 19Rohit Sharma scores 138 against England in the third ODI at Lord's.
- September 3After a review meeting at BCCI headquarters in Mumbai, secretary Devajit Saikia seeks to quash uncertainty around Rohit's ODI future.
- Monday (date not stated in the source)Chetan Sharma backs Rohit and Kohli to continue, speaking to TOI at an event in Mumbai.
- September 28India men's cricket team, led by Shreyas Iyer, begin their 2026 Asian Games campaign in the quarterfinals.
- October 4Last date of Ajit Agarkar's tenure as BCCI chief selector.
Who has a stake
- Rohit Sharma — The 39-year-old former India skipper's ODI place and possible participation in next year's ODI World Cup are under scrutiny.
- Virat Kohli — His ODI future is tied to the same fitness-and-form debate; Chetan Sharma says he scores in 'every game'.
- Ajit Agarkar — Current chief selector whose tenure ends October 4; reportedly not seeking extension amid differences with BCCI over Rohit's future.
- BCCI (and secretary Devajit Saikia) — Must settle selection direction, manage senior players' futures and enforce its new domestic cricket mandate.
- Chetan Sharma — Former chief selector whose public endorsement shapes the debate on senior players and domestic cricket.
- Indian domestic cricket / Ranji Trophy — Gains from BCCI's rule that fit, available India players must turn out in first-class cricket.
- India women's and men's Asian Games squads — Women face Sri Lanka in the gold medal clash; men, under Shreyas Iyer, enter at the quarterfinal stage.
Why it matters
Selection calls on two of India's most decorated batters affect team composition ahead of next year's ODI World Cup and reveal how the BCCI balances form, fitness and age against transition planning. The reported friction behind Agarkar's exit shows that selection is as much an institutional question as a cricketing one. The parallel push to make domestic cricket mandatory signals a wider attempt to link national selection to Ranji Trophy performance.
UPSC angle
Prelims pointers
- Chetan Sharma: first bowler to take a hat-trick in ODI World Cup history — 1987, v New Zealand at Nagpur.
- Chetan Sharma's India record: 23 Tests, 65 ODIs, 128 wickets, career spanning 1984-94; chief selector Dec 2020-Feb 2023.
- Ajit Agarkar's tenure as BCCI chief selector ends October 4.
- Devajit Saikia is the BCCI secretary; review meeting held at BCCI headquarters, Mumbai, on September 3.
- Rohit Sharma scored 138 v England in the third ODI at Lord's on July 19.
- 2026 Asian Games are at Aichi Nagoya, Japan; India men's cricket team captained by Shreyas Iyer.
Mains framing
The debate over Rohit Sharma's ODI future illustrates the recurring tension in Indian cricket between continuity built on proven match-winners and the need for planned generational transition. Chetan Sharma's argument is performance-based: Rohit's 138 at Lord's on July 19 and Kohli's consistency mean that fitness and runs, not age, should be the criteria, and he invokes Rohit's T20 World Cup triumph — India's first in 17 years — as reason for gratitude. Against this sits the institutional dimension: the reported differences between chief selector Ajit Agarkar and the BCCI over Rohit's future, culminating in Agarkar not seeking an extension beyond October 4, and the board's repeated attempts through secretary Devajit Saikia to publicly settle the uncertainty. The episode points to gaps in transparent, criteria-driven selection communication and in insulating selectors from public and administrative pressure. A constructive way forward, as the source indicates, lies in objective benchmarks of fitness and form, and in the BCCI's new mandate that all fit and available India players feature in the Ranji Trophy or first-class cricket — strengthening the domestic pipeline so that both senior retention and succession rest on demonstrated runs rather than reputation or speculation.
Key terms
- BCCI chief selector
- Head of the national men's selection committee; currently Ajit Agarkar, whose tenure ends October 4.
- 'Kohinoors' of Indian cricket
- Chetan Sharma's phrase describing Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli as priceless assets to Indian cricket.
- Ranji Trophy
- India's premier domestic first-class competition, which the BCCI now requires fit and available India players to play.
- ODI World Cup
- One-day international global tournament, scheduled next year, and the context for the Rohit-Kohli selection debate.
- Asian Games 2026
- Multi-sport event at Aichi Nagoya, Japan, where Indian women's and men's cricket teams are competing.
Practice questions
- Should selection for national teams rest purely on current fitness and form, or must boards also plan generational transition? Discuss with reference to the debate on Rohit Sharma's ODI future.
- Examine how administrative friction between selectors and the board can affect team performance and public confidence in Indian cricket.
- Evaluate the BCCI's decision to make domestic cricket mandatory for fit and available India players. How might it strengthen the first-class system?
Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.