Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], August 29 (ANI): Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan said that for seniors like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, currently the ODI-only players now, and pacer Mohammed Shami, the challenge would be to have a regular game time to prove fitness ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2027.

Pathan was speaking to Boria Majumdar on Revsportz. Rohit and Virat, after calling time on their T20I careers last year following the T20 World Cup win, also retired from Test cricket ahead of India's tour of England, which kickstarted the new ICC World Test Championship (WTC) cycle of 2025-27 for India. Shami, who has not announced retirement from any format, was not in the squad for the tour to England and was also not included in the Asia Cup T20I squad. His last assignment for India was the victorious ICC Champions Trophy campaign in Dubai back in March. With his fitness concerns that kept him out of the game for over a year after the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup final, it will be interesting to see how Shami is handled across all formats.

Speaking to Boria on Revsportz, Pathan said about the trio that for them, the challenge would be to play 'regular cricket'.

'Otherwise, they are all outstanding. I am 41 years old, and I play in two to three leagues. I'm giving my example because I'm playing three leagues a year, and my challenges are that I do not bowl too much because of retirement. So, say, I play one in November, one in June-July, and then one in October, so stop and start is the main issue for me. My work, anyway, is more about broadcasting and coaching now, but when it is time to play, it is not too regular for me. In these situations, it is difficult to keep your body working,' he said.

'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. Virat is going to play IPL only, and then whenever there is first-class cricket, but just to play and not to prove anything. So, continuing the game time will not be an easy task. T20 has taken over, and one-dayers have taken a backseat, so the number of matches has changed in both. World Cup 2027 would not be a challenge if the continuity of the game time is handled. Unfortunately, they will face pressure,' he added.

Pathan said that he had spoken to Rohit about fitness, and he is 'very keen' about it.

'Then Virat, I am sure, is very keen as well with the way he has been seen practising in England. I have also seen a statement from Mohammed Shami, which says that he is very, very keen too. The keenness is important from the player's point of view, so this is a great thing about them - that they are in touch and working on their fitness as well. If I am looking at things as a broadcaster, I think the game time they get on a regular basis will decide their presence in World Cup 2027,' he added.

The former all-rounder said that in the case of these three players, the communication should be 'very clear' when it comes to their future in international cricket.

'Knowing Gautam (Gambhir) and Ajit (Agarkar), I think they will make it very clear in terms of communication. And as I said, having game time regularly will keep away all sorts of challenges. If you are talking about 2027, that challenge will be there because they're not playing for India currently. After, say, three games against Australia and IPL, if there is a big gap, then the continuity breaks,' he concluded.

After the Asia Cup, Rohit and Virat would be seen in action during a three-match ODI series against Australia in October. There have been reports about the team management not looking at them as options heading into the 2027 WC. Whether they play the ODIs scheduled for November-December against South Africa at home and in January against New Zealand at home, out of that could be interesting. (ANI)