Why Kohli, Rohit are not playing Duleep Trophy 2026

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma remain two of the biggest names in Indian cricket. After retiring from Test and T20I cricket, the two legends now represent India only in One Day Internationals (ODIs) and continue to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL). As the 2026-27 Duleep Trophy approaches, many fans are wondering whether Kohli and Rohit will feature in the prestigious domestic tournament.

The excitement around their possible participation has grown because both players returned to domestic cricket last season. Virat Kohli played for Delhi, while Rohit Sharma represented Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Both stars impressed with brilliant centuries, showing that they can still dominate at the domestic level.

However, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will not play in the Duleep Trophy 2026. The BCCI has exempted several senior players from the tournament as part of its workload management plan. In this article, we explain the real reason behind their absence and what it means for India's domestic cricket season.

Why are Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma not playing the Duleep Trophy 2026?

The 2026-27 Duleep Trophy is set to begin on August 23, but fans will not see Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma in action. Since the tournament is a first-class competition and both players retired from Test cricket more than a year ago, they are not expected to return for the tournament. The BCCI has also exempted several senior players from participating.

Virat Kohli's last first-class match came in January 2025, when he represented Delhi against Railways in the Ranji Trophy at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. He scored six runs before being dismissed by Himanshu Sangwan. Rohit Sharma also played his final first-class match during the same Ranji Trophy season for Mumbai against Jammu & Kashmir, scoring 3 and 28 in his two innings before ending his red-ball career.

The recently announced West Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy also confirmed Rohit's absence. Ruturaj Gaikwad has been named captain, while players such as Sarfaraz Khan, Prithvi Shaw, Shardul Thakur, and Tushar Deshpande have been included in the squad. With both Kohli and Rohit retired from Test cricket, fans should not expect to see the senior batters in this year's Duleep Trophy.

When will Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma take the field next?

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were last seen in action for India during the three-match ODI series against England. Although India lost the series, both senior batters delivered impressive performances. Rohit Sharma made history by becoming the first Indian batter to score an ODI century at Lord's, while Kohli also looked in good touch.

With both players now retired from Test and T20I cricket, they will only represent India in the 50-over format. As a result, fans will have to wait a little longer to see the legendary duo back in the Indian jersey.

The next opportunity to watch Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in action will be during India's home ODI series against the West Indies. The series is scheduled to begin on September 27, with the opening match set to be played at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram. Fans will be hoping the experienced pair continue their strong form in the upcoming series.

Inside Duleep Trophy teams list 2026

The 2026 Duleep Trophy marks the return of India's traditional inter-zonal first-class format, bringing back one of the country's most prestigious domestic tournaments. Six teams—North Zone, South Zone, East Zone, West Zone, Central Zone, and North East Zone—will compete for the title. The tournament is scheduled to begin on August 23, 2026, in Bengaluru, with West Zone entering as the defending champions.

As the new domestic season approaches, the participating teams have started announcing their squads. So far, only East Zone and West Zone have confirmed their line-ups. Ishan Kishan will lead the East Zone, while Ruturaj Gaikwad has been named captain of the West Zone. The remaining four zonal teams are expected to announce their squads in the coming days.

East Zone: Ishan Kishan (C) (wk), Vaibhav Suryavanshi (vc), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Kumar Kushagra, Subhranshu Senapati, Virat Singh, Anukul Roy, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammed Shami, Mukesh Kumar, Denish Das, Sudip Kumar Gharami, Suraj Jaiswal, Shikhar Mohan, and Abhijit Sarkar.

West Zone: Ruturaj Gaikwad (C), Harvik Desai, Sarfaraz Khan (wk), Urvil Patel (wk), Shivalik Sharma, Prithvi Shaw, Shams Mulani (vc), Tanush Kotian, Musheer Khan, Atit Sheth, Shardul Thakur, Tushar Deshpande, Mukesh Choudhary, Siddharth Desai, and Jaymeet Patel.