After Agarkar’s ‘non-committal’ remark, Shubman Gill clears air on Rohit, Kohli’s 2027 WC future
New Delhi: India’s newly appointed ODI captain Shubman Gill has said that both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli remain very much in India’s plans for the 2027 ODI World Cup, putting to rest speculation about the senior players’ future in the 50-over format.
Speaking to the media for the first time since being named captain, Gill said the team values the immense experience and match-winning ability that both stalwarts bring, adding that their inclusion for the next World Cup in South Africa will depend purely on form and fitness.
“The experience they have and the number of matches they have won for India, there are very few players who have done that,” Gill said ahead of the second Test against the West Indies in New Delhi on Thursday. “There are very few players in the world with such skill, quality, and experience. From that perspective, we are definitely looking at them for 2027.”
Gill’s statement comes days after chief selector Ajit Agarkar gave a “non-committal” response when asked about Rohit and Kohli’s long-term roles in white-ball cricket, hinting at a possible generational shift.
With India now opting for separate captains across formats, Gill replaced Rohit Sharma as ODI skipper after earlier taking over the Test captaincy. The move was reportedly made to avoid leadership overlap, leaving both Rohit and Kohli to compete for places in the squad based on performance.
Reflecting on his leadership journey, Gill said he continues to learn from his predecessor’s approach. “There are so many qualities that I have inherited from Rohit bhai, and still want to,” he said. “The calmness he brings and the friendships he has built in the team are something I truly admire. These are the qualities I want to take from him.”
Both Rohit and Kohli are set to make their return to professional cricket during India’s upcoming white-ball tour of Australia later this month. The three-match ODI series begins in Perth on October 19, followed by five T20Is.
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Screenwriter Salim Khan on ventilator support and stable, say doctors
Mumbai (PTI): Veteran screenwriter Salim Khan suffered a brain haemorrhage which has been tackled, is on ventilator support as a safeguard and stable, doctors treating him said on Wednesday, a day after he was admitted to the Lilavati Hospital here.
The 90-year-old, one half of the celebrated Salim-Javed duo which scripted films such as "Sholay", "Deewar" and "Don" with Javed Akhtar, is in the ICU and recovery might take some time given his age.
"His blood pressure was high for which we treated him and we had to put him on a ventilator because we wanted to do certain investigations. Now the ventilator was put as a safeguard so that his situation doesn't get worse. So it is not that he is critical," Dr Jalil Parkar told reporters.
"We did the investigations that were required and today we have done a small procedure on him, I will not go into the details. The procedure done is called DSA (digital subtraction angiography). The procedure has been accomplished, he is fine and stable and shifted back to ICU. By tomorrow, we hope to get him off the ventilator. All in all, he is doing quite well," he added.
Asked whether he suffered a brain haemorrhage, the doctor said, "Unko thoda haemorrhage hua tha, which we’ve tackled. No surgery is required.
As concern over Khan's health mounted, his children, including superstar Salman Khan and Arbaaz Khan, daughter Alvira, and sons-in-law Atul Agnihotri and Aayush Sharma, have been seen outside the hospital along with other well-wishers. His long-time partner Akhtar was also seen coming out of the hospital.
Khan, a household name in the 70s and 80s, turned 90 on November 24 last year. It was the day Dharmendra, the star of many of his films, including "Sholay", "Seeta aur Geeta" and "Yaadon Ki Baraat", passed away.
Hailing from an affluent family in Indore, Khan arrived in Mumbai in his 20s with dreams of stardom. He was good looking and confident he would make a mark in the industry as an actor. But that did not happen. And then, after struggling for close to a decade and getting confined to small roles in films, he changed lanes.
He worked as an assistant to Abrar Alvi and soon met Akhtar to form one of Hindi cinema's most formidable writing partnerships. They worked together on two dozen movies with most of them achieving blockbuster status.
Other than "Sholay", "Deewar" and "Don", Khan and Akhtar also penned "Trishul", "Zanjeer", "Seeta Aur Geeta", "Haathi Mere Saathi", "Yaadon Ki Baarat" and "Mr India".
