India batting stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will not feature in the fourth-round matches of the Vijay Hazare Trophy taking place on Wednesday. While Mumbai take on Goa at the Jaipuria Vidyalaya Ground in Jaipur and Delhi face Odisha at the KSCA Cricket Ground in Alur, both senior players will be absent as they manage their workloads ahead of the ODI series against New Zealand, which begins on January 11 in Vadodara.

Rohit completes Vijay Hazare Trophy commitments

Rohit Sharma was originally scheduled to play two matches for Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, and he has fulfilled that commitment. The former India captain featured in Mumbai’s first two rounds, scoring a magnificent 155 in the opener before falling for a golden duck against Uttarakhand in the second match.

Rohit will not participate further in the tournament and is expected to join the Indian ODI squad in Vadodara ahead of the New Zealand series.

Virat Kohli to play one more match for Delhi

Virat Kohli, however, will feature in one more match for Delhi. The star batter has confirmed his availability for Delhi’s Vijay Hazare Trophy clash against Railways on January 6 at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru, according to DDCA President Rohan Jaitley.

While the BCCI mandated that all centrally-contracted players must participate in at least two Vijay Hazare Trophy matches, Kohli has opted to play a third match to ensure he is match-ready ahead of the New Zealand series.

“As of now, he is playing. Virat has given his availability for three games,” Jaitley told PTI.

Kohli has been in scintillating form in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, smashing 131 and 77 in his first two matches for Delhi. In the process, he became the fastest to 16,000 List A runs, reaching the milestone in his 330th innings and surpassing legendary Sachin Tendulkar, who took 391 innings.

Kohli to join India squad in Vadodara by January 8

According to a BCCI source, the Indian ODI squad for the New Zealand series is expected to assemble in Vadodara by January 8. There is a possibility that Kohli might arrive a day earlier to train before the series opener on January 11.

The three-match ODI series against the Black Caps will be played in Vadodara (January 11), Rajkot (January 14), and Indore (January 18), as India continue their preparations for the 2027 ODI World Cup.

Bumrah and Pandya to be rested from ODI series

Meanwhile, as PTI reported earlier, star all-rounder Hardik Pandya and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah will be rested from the ODI series as part of their workload management routine created by the BCCI sports science team.

Both players will be crucial for India during the home T20 World Cup, which begins on February 7, and the decision to rest them reflects the board’s focus on keeping them fresh for the marquee tournament.