Irfan Pathan believes Kohli ODI career may be over before WC27

Former India cricketer Irfan Pathan has asserted that star batter Virat Kohli’s days in ODI cricket might be numbered.

The former India captain retired from T20Is after his side won the T20 World Cup last year.

He announced his retirement from Test cricket in May this year, just ahead of their five-match away Test series against England.

While Virat Kohli reiterated his availability for the ODI squad, Irfan Pathan claimed that he might not make it to the Cricket World Cup 2027.

During an interview with an Indian media outlet, the former pacer said that Kohli might only focus on the Indian Premier League (IPL) and first-class cricket.

“Virat is going to play IPL only, and then whenever there is First-Class cricket, it would be just to play and not to prove anything. T20 has taken over and one-dayers have taken a backseat, so the number of matches has changed in both formats,” he said.

According to Irfan Pathan, fitness and continuous game time pose a big challenge for senior players such as Kohli and Rohit Sharma to maintain their place in the national ODI side.

“Talking about these professional cricketers, whose only focus is to play cricket for now, the biggest challenge for them would be playing regularly and staying fit,” the former Indian cricketer said.

He, however, mentioned the intense training regime Virat Kohli, which allows him to stay fit for international games.

“Virat, I am sure, is also very keen, based on the way he has been practising in England,” Irfan Pathan said.

“If you’re talking about [World Cup] 2027, that challenge will exist because they are not currently playing for India. After, say, three games against Australia and IPL, if there’s a big gap, continuity breaks,” he added.

Irfan Pathan believes Kohli’s ODI career may be over before WC27