India’s two legendary cricketers Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have reached Ranchi and have started preparations at the nets ahead of the first ODI between India and South Africa on Sunday.
India are not in the driving seat as South Africa defeated them in humiliating fashion in the two-match Test series, which recently ended in a one-sided whitewash. This was South Africa’s first Test series win in India since 2000.
After the defeat, Indian coach Gautam Gambhir had to bear the brunt of disappointing the Indian fans. Their only chance to restore some respect is to defeat the Proteas in a one-off ODI series. The only positive thing for them is the return of the stalwarts for the ODIs.
Will Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli be able to bring back India’s lost honor in ODIs?
India suffered a crushing defeat in ODIs against Australia when they toured them for a 3-match series. Many batsmen failed to look promising, but the mystery of the comeback of experienced Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli loomed large.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be more important for the Indian team after Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel are no longer a part of the Indian playing XI. He will have to lead the Indian team.
He was seen practicing at the nets in Ranchi ahead of the opening ODI between India and South Africa, which will be held at the Ranchi Stadium. When KL Rahul becomes the Indian captain for the first time, both these legends will take charge of the team.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in a batting practice session together in Ranchi.
RO-KO show is coming pic.twitter.com/KmJvTjaTx8
– ๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ก๐ข๐ข๐ขโดโต (@Rushiii_12) 27 November 2025
Rohit Sharma will enter the South Africa ODI as the world No. 1 ranked T20I batsman.
Indian captain Rohit Sharma will be seen taking charge in the ODI series as the No. 1 ranked ODI batsman and has made some surprising progress since his return to the format.
Rohit scored a brilliant half-century followed by a century, which helped him gain the lead over giants Australia and overtake Daryl Mitchell, who was ranked No. 1. He has also been appointed as the ICC brand ambassador for the T20 World Cup 2026.
Virat Kohli calls for comeback in Test after crushing defeat against South Africa
India lost the South Africa series by a margin of 2-0 and suffered a crushing defeat. As a result of this defeat, many people have called for Virat Kohli to make a comeback in the Indian team.
Virat announced his retirement from the Test format in June and since then, the Indian team has possibly lost its stability in the Indian batting order. The names of many players have been considered for this role, but their responsible positions have not been taken yet.
Shubman Gill played a good role, but so far they have not found any promising person in the number. Sai Sudarshan’s Role 3 has failed to deliver promising performances.
Also read: Pat Cummins’ return for day-night Test at Gabba gives huge boost to Australia
