‘Performance should be the marker, not age’ – Harbhajan Singh on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli for 2027 World Cup

Harbhajan Singh has backed Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli for the 2027 World Cup, arguing that performance should be the deciding factor rather than age. The 46-year-old former India spinner made his position clear during a podcast interview. Rohit will be 40 years old and Kohli will be 39 years old when the tournament takes place in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.

Harbhajan has previously stated that both players should be among the first two names in the squad for the tournament. His latest comments reinforce his belief that fitness and skill level, not chronological age, should guide selection decisions for the World Cup.

“Whoever the player is, I believe the marker should be performance, not age,” Harbhajan said as quoted by Livemint

Harbhajan’s view on age versus performance in selection

The former India cricketer drew a comparison with international football to illustrate his point about sustained excellence. He highlighted how players with exceptional fitness and skill can continue to perform at the highest level regardless of their age.

“Virat Kohli may be 39 but if he is still beating those 20-year-old guys on the field, it (his age) doesn’t matter. Look at Lionel Messi. At 40 (39), five men fail to stop him. If a player has that kind of fitness and skill where even five opponents can’t keep him at bay, then we know that skill always takes precedence,” Harbhajan said.

Kohli’s role in changing Indian cricket’s fitness culture

Harbhajan credited Kohli with transforming India’s approach to fitness and aggressive cricket when he became captain in 2014-15. The former spinner believes this shift fundamentally changed how Indian teams approach challenging situations and set new standards for physical conditioning across the squad.

“This change was first brought in by Virat Kohli when he became the captain in 2014-15. Before that we won’t think that we can go for a chase of 400 on the final day. Virat told the boys, ‘let’s at least try. We might lose but if we keep trying one day we will surpass that 400 plus in last innings.'” Harbhajan said.

Harbhajan drew on his own career experience to explain how players recognise when their bodies signal the need to step back. The former spinner accumulated 416 Test wickets and 269 ODI wickets during his playing career. He officially retired in December 2021, though his last Test match came in 2015 at Galle, where he faced a difficult outing against Dinesh Chandimal. Harbhajan said that players usually know when to call time on their careers based on their physical condition and performance levels.