New Delhi: Former Australia cricketer David Warner lauded Virat Kohli for his fitness and commitment towards the game as he backed the Team India star to continue playing till the 2027 ODI World Cup. Questions have been raised about Kohli’s future in ODIs alongside Rohit Sharma, with the duo playing only one format for India after retiring from Tests and T20Is.

After retiring from T20Is together following the T20 World Cup last year, Kohli and Rohit hung up their boots from Test cricket earlier this year. Their lack of game time throughout the year, with India only playing a handful of ODIs in the run-up to the next World Cup, is a huge concern.

However, Warner believes Kohli can continue playing for as long as he wants if he has the hunger and desire to continue. Calling him one of the fittest cricketers in the world, the former Australia batter said he has no doubts that Kohli can make it to the next World Cup with the mindset that he has.

“I think that’s a good question for Virat. If you have still got the hunger and the desire to keep playing, and he wants to play in 2027, and his mindset is there, there’s no reason why he can’t. He’s one of the fittest guys in the game along with being a great father and a husband. So for me, I’ve got no doubts he can make that. It’s whether or not he still has that passion to get up for training and for doing all the stuff that you have to get there. And I would never doubt that at all with his mindset,” Warner was quoted as saying by Fox Cricket.

Ahead of the recently concluded ODI series between India and Australia, multiple reports claimed that the selectors and the team management might look beyond Kohli and Rohit for the 2027 ODI World Cup. Several experts also raised questions about their future, however, the duo managed to respond to their critics in style with a memorable unbeaten partnership in the 3rd ODI in Sydney on Saturday.

Rohit, Kohli shone in Sydney to help India beat Australia by 9 wickets and end the three-match series 2-1 after consecutive defeats in the first two matches. Rohit slammed an unbeaten 121, while Kohli scored an unbeaten 74 to take India home in a 237-run chase with 11.3 overs to spare. The duo signed off on a high from what potentially was their Australian swansong for India.