Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir, who is currently Team India’s head coach across all three formats, is reported to have a strained relationship with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
Ever since Gambhir took over the coaching role from Rahul Dravid, India’s performance has been mixed. Although the team has maintained a decent track record in white ball cricket, the outcomes in tests have been disastrous, given their struggling performance both at home and away venues.
With Rohit and Kohli remaining active only in One Day Internationals (ODIs), the Indian team’s dressing room atmosphere doesn’t seem to be as healthy as it used to be.
To decide the future of the two batting stalwarts, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is likely to plan a meeting either in Raipur or Visakhapatnam, the hosting venues for the second and third ODI.
BCCI Source About Upcoming Meeting With RO-KO
After the first ODI, the closest sources of the BCCI hinted that Rohit and Kohli might attend the meeting in Raipur or Visakhapatnam:
“Of Course! Speaking about the relationship between Gautam Gambhir and experienced players Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, it isn’t as good as it should have been. Possibly, there could be a meeting to discuss the future of two senior players either in Raipur or Visakhapatnam, where India will play its second and third ODI against South Africa,” the BCCI source told.
According to the BCCI source, RO-KO’s relationship with Gambhir could cause concerns as well as degrade the team’s success rate in the long run.
Amidst the increasing tensions, India’s batting coach Sitanshu Kotak wasn’t ready to accept such claims. After India’s 17-run win in the first ODI in Ranchi, Sitanshu, during the press conference, questioned the importance of conducting a review meeting.
Latest Report Fuels the Speculations
Several reports from various sources revealed that there was no kind of interaction between the former captain Rohit Sharma and the BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar during the Australian series.
Likewise, there hasn’t been any conversation between Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir. As Rohit and Kohli’s fans continue to backlash Gambhir on social media, the BCCI is very disappointed with the issue.
Kohli’s Recent Act Ignites Debates
Virat Kohli, who bagged his Player of the Match Award from the organizers, completely ignored Gambhir after the post-match presentation, which added fuel to the existing disputes.
While climbing up the dressing room stairs, Kohli was busy operating his phone and didn’t even glance towards Gambhir, who was standing inside near the dressing room door.
Earlier, the duo hugged each other during the first innings, but Virat ignoring the head coach was something surprising, which was captured on camera.
Kohli and Gambhir were former teammates of the Indian cricket team led by the then captain MS Dhoni. But their deteriorating relationship continues to become the hot topic of debate.
Also, it is said that Virat didn’t have any conversation with Gambhir during the practice sessions in Ranchi, thereby fueling the speculations to a peak level.
Reason for RO-KO’s Sour Relationship with Gambhir
The unexpected retirement of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from test cricket in May 2025 was the starting point of the rift with Gautam Gambhir.
Moreover, the latest reports claim that Rohit and Ajit Agarkar’s relationship wasn’t going well during the 3-match ODI series in Australia.
The Australian tour was indeed the first international assignment for Rohit and Kohli in the Indian jersey after announcing their retirement from the longest format.
While Rohit managed to get back to his form in the second ODI, Kohli struggled for the first two matches. However, he scored a gritty 74-run knock in the third and last ODI of the series, where Rohit slammed a match-winning century to avoid his team getting whitewashed.
Rohit and Kohli’s Vintage Form Since Their Test Retirement
Regardless of their age, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli prove that there is still a lot of potential left inside them to play international cricket. As the duo of veteran batters has maintained their fitness to the best levels, they have been showing intent to score runs in their recent games.
Rohit scored a hat-trick of 50+scores in his last four ODI matches. While Kohli had a subpar start in his first two games, but found his lost form with a crucial half-century against Australia and a stellar ton against South Africa at home.
As Ro-Ko continue to exhibit an ageless performance, fans blame BCCI chief Ajit Agarkar and head coach Gautam Gambhir for forcing the two talented batters into early test retirement.
Especially, the duo’s 136-run partnership in the recently concluded Ranchi ODI ensured India posted a formidable total against the Proteas.
With Rohit and Kohli once again proving their worth as the backbone of the Indian team, it is confirmed that the squad will be incomplete for the ICC ODI World Cup 2027 without these two match-winners.